Final Jeopardy: World Geography (2-12-15)

The Final Jeopardy question (2/12/2015), in the category “World Geography” was:

Not in the 10 longest, this 1,560 mile river in a fertile basin flows by 29 cities of over 100,000 people.

The bets are in on our three finalists in the 2015 Teachers Tournament and today is the first match of two final matches. Here are the finalists with the scores they finished with: Jennifer Giles, $14,400; Cathy Farrell, $15,800; and Adam Elkana-Hale, $18,500. They start at zero today but whatever they have at the end of this match will be added to their scores in tomorrow’s game to determine the $100K winner.

Round 1: Adam found the Jeopardy! round Daily Double in “A Textbook Category” under the $1,000 clue before the first break. He was in second place with $1,800, $600 less than Cathy’s lead. He made it a true Daily Double and he was RIGHT.

“The Eyes on the Prize Civil Rights Reader’ includes this 1963 letter that begins “While confined here…” show

Adam finished in the lead with $9,800. Cathy was second with $4,800 and Jennifer was last with $3,200.

Round 2: Adam found the first Daily Double in “A History Lesson” under the $800 clue. He was in the lead with $12,200, $7,400 more than Cathy in second place. He bet $4,000 and guessed York. That was WRONG.

In 1703, John Sheffield, Duke of this, built a palatial estate on the former site of London’s Arlington House. show

Jennifer found the last Daily Double in “Anatomy” under the $1,600 clue. She was in second place with $7,200, $2,200 less than Adam’s lead. She bet $3,000 and she was RIGHT.

Heart sac is another name for this 2-layered sac that surrounds the heart. show

Cathy finished in the lead with $13,600. Jennifer was next with $13,400 and Adam was in third place with $13,000.

TWO of the contestants got Final Jeopardy! right.

WHAT IS THE GANGES?

“The river known as the Ganges is officially and popularly known by its Hindu name, Ganga. The river has its source in the Himalayas, at Gaumakh in the southern Himalayas on the Indian side of the Tibetan border. It is 1,560 miles (2,510 km) long and flows through China, India, Nepal and Bangladesh. The Ganges river basin is one of the most fertile and densely populated in the world and covers an area of 400,000 sq miles (1,000,000 sq km). The river flows through 29 cities with population over 100,000, 23 cities with population between 50,000 and 100,000, and about 48 towns.” (India Tourism)



Adam wrote down the Jordan, crossed it out but ran out of time to get his change in. He lost his $10,000 bet and finished with $3,000.

Jennifer wrote the Danube first, then changed it to the Ganges. She added $9,000 to her score to finish with $22,400.

Cathy got it right on the first try. Her $5,000 bet brought her up to $18,600.

FJ Results: 2-12-15

Alex Trebek offered his usual words of wisdom, that a player in a distant third has often come back in the second match to win it all. We know, but Adam did take his setbacks kinda hard. Sometimes when the wind goes out of your sails, the waters get choppy. We shall see tomorrow.

2 years ago:: TWO of the players got this FJ in “Famous Women”

Her 1886 obituary in a Massachusetts paper said, “Very few in the village, except among the older inhabitants, knew” her “personally”. show

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20 Responses

  1. jacob ska says:

    @VJ, Just had time this morning to look at my recording of the game yesterday. I noticed something interesting. If you look at the “a” where Adam started to write “Jordan” and crossed it out, it is nothing like the letter after the “G” that he claimed was an “a.”

    That is clearly “Gr” Adam. Granted that the “a” on your top line was printed and “Gr” was cursive and I’m not a handwriting expert all of the other J! Blogspheres have it as “Gr” too.

    • VJ says:

      Yes, that is exactly what I thought — I looked at the r in Jordan, too. That is why I thought of what you said about that “square root of Gumby” answer LINK

      But unlike that time, the answer had not already been revealed.

      • jacob ska says:

        VJ, you have a fantastic memory. I also have had grad students ask for partial credit even though they did not get to finish their response on a test. That’s what Adam reminded me of. I hope he didn’t think Alex Trebek was going to give him credit.

        He looked at Alex like “Can I get credit?”

        I keep playing that part of fj over and over. I’m laughing because he would never accept something like that from his students.

    • Leena says:

      He wrote in cursive and couldn’t finish his “a”. Ha ha, Jacob. You’re wrong

  2. jacob ska says:

    VJ, can’t chat much this evening due to a project I’m trying to finish. Just wanted to ask your take on Adam’s frustration. Surprised me that he let his emotions get the best of him.

    • jacob ska says:

      He’d better calm down for the match tomorrow to win.

      • john blahuta says:

        i’m afraid he won’t. one of my best friends in austria was a psychiatrist. we often talked about what makes humans – or the brain – tick. it would take a few dozen pages just to TRY to explain why somebody can suddenly crumble, when – on the outside at least – there are no signs whatsoever to indicate s/he might…

        the brain is the most complex organ and it is no wonder that psychiatry is the least progressed branch of medicine. the amount of electrical and chemical processes during a nanosecond in the brain – directing EVERYTHING- is mind blowing. you can’t even realize the #.

    • VJ says:

      Well, he threw away a big chunk of his lead on that Buckingham DD. The answer was probably a big smack in the head for him. WHY didn’t I notice PALATIAL ?!*$$*!

      Tough luck but if you want to bet like that, you have to be prepared to carry on no matter what. But as we all know very well, many crash and burn after something like that happens.

      Funny, I thought about you when I saw his attempt to put in what Alex said looked like “Gr”. Adam said it was “Ga”, and he said that before Jennifer’s answer was shown so maybe it was, but it sure looked like “Gr” to me. And then, fate twisted the knife — she had a wrong answer but realized it in enough time to fix it.

      • Cece says:

        Oh Adam, Oh adam!

        “WHY didn’t I notice PALATIAL ?!*$$*!”

        This is what I meant the other day, VJ, by the inattention blindness that plagues the population. But, there’s still a chance for him to come around tomorrow. We never know.

        • VJ says:

          I know what you mean, Cece, though I do think Adam was focusing — just on the wrong part(s) of the clue. Nothing was clicking so he just blurted out York.

          I don’t know John Sheffield from Adam (no pun intended), but I said it’s only an $800 clue, it can’t be that hard… palatial… Buckingham!

          As for a recovery, of course it’s possible but if he’s going to get rattled like that, his goose is cooked.

        • Cece says:

          “His goose is cooked” — never heard that one before 🙂 I hope he calms down; he’s good and can play a good game again tomorrow.

          But hopefully he won’t take a Valium though, and spaces out like Eric (?) did the other day.
          :):):)

        • VJ says:

          Don’t they have to tape this whole week in one day? That’s what I think – they do 5 games per taping.

          Eric was in the third game of Week 1. Then he was in the second game of Week 2.

          Adam was in the first game of Week 2 and now the 4th and 5th. Probably only had time to take 10 deep breaths between the last two.

        • Cece says:

          Yes, you’re right. Of course they tape the whole week in one day.

          I’m playing the J!producers make-believe game and pretending it’s live! 🙂
          I should have said I hope he DIDN’T take a Valium between the 2 tapings.

          Yes, I meant Eric, who was very detached on Tuesday’s game, like he was on something 🙂

  3. VJ says:

    Dear Teachers,

    allow me to recommend The Last Emperor (1987), Oscar winner for Best Picture

  4. john blahuta says:

    well, i thought that the danube might come up. fortunately jennifer changed it in time to the right answer.
    anmd i am pleasantly surprised that TWO got it. i was only counting at ONE…
    at the moment i am up one white russian…but you know how things have often changed on the second day of a tournament.but it looks like it will come down between cathy and jennifer.

    btw, from experience i can say that when it gets choppy,the wind goes out out of your sails…works both ways,unfortunately. the weather conditions here in hawaii can change literally within 5 minutes. from brightest sunshine and a light breeze to a thunderstorm and vice versa.
    so it should be an exciting duel tomorrow.

    • john blahuta says:

      and btw, yes it looks the fork is already stuck in adam. he seems to be done. but….
      stranger things have happened.

  5. VJ says:

    Here is the highly amusing 4S (Succinct Silver Screen Summaries) Category. How’d you do?

    $400 – 1960: Secretary steals substantial sum, showers, succumbs

    $800 – 1941: Scandal sheet skipper says single sled sentence

    $1200 – 1959: Mob murder makes male musicians move, matronly makeover materializes

    $1600 – 2011: Mississippi maids mind menial mothering

    $2000 – 1948: Gold-grubbing gringos get greedy

    • Cece says:

      I only got 2: Psycho, because of the words shower & succumbs — I never saw the movie, and The Help — which I saw.

      Oh, well.

      • john blahuta says:

        i wonder how cerveja brasileira tastes..:):)

        • Cece says:

          Your taste buds may be in for a treat tonight :):)

          (A water pipe busted at the building where I work so we closed for a couple of hours until is fixed and I got a nice break.)