Final Jeopardy: Tech History (7-29-22)

Today’s Final Jeopardy question (7/29/2022) in the category “Tech History” was:

For about 20 years after its invention, it had few practical uses; then suddenly it revolutionized grocery checkouts & home audio

New champ Katrina Hill, a non-profit professional from Alexandria, VA, won $27,601 yesterday. In her second game and the last game of Season 38, Katrina’s competitors are: Darin Ciccotelli, an associate professor of rhetoric & composition from Long Beach, CA; and Luigi De Guzman, an attorney from Arlington, VA.

Round 1 Categories: Governors – Business Abbrev. – Movie Facts – Just Take the L – How Do You Sleep at Night?

Luigi found the Jeopardy! round Daily Double in “Islands & Peninsulas” under the $1,000 clue on the 5th pick of the round. At $1,700, he was the only one with any money. Luigi made it a true Daily Double and he was RIGHT.

55 mi. from Siberia, the westernmost point of the North American continent is on this peninsula named for a man big in Alaskan history. show

WHAT IS THE SEWARD PENINSULA?

Katrina finished in the lead with $7,000. Luigi was next with $6,800 and Darin was in third place with $2,800. All clues were shown.

Round 2 Categories: History – French Phrases – “C”haracter Study – Mashed-up Sitcom Titles – Watercolors – Let’s Go Fishing

Darin found the first Daily Double in “History” under the $1,200 clue on the 9th pick. He was in second place with $7,200 now, $2,000 less than Luigi’s lead. He bet $2,000 but he drew a blank so that was WRONG.

In January 1536 this royal gave birth to a stillborn male child; by May she was deceased. show

WHO IS ANNE BOLEYN?

Two clues later, Darin landed on the last Daily Double in “‘C’haracter Study” under the $1,200 clue. In third place with $6,000 now, he had $3,200 less than Luigi’s lead. Darin bet $3,000 and, this time, he was RIGHT (as only the first name was required).

She’s the heroine of “Wuthering Heights” & Alex Trebek loved to imitate Laurence Olivier repeating her name. show

WHO IS CATHERINE or CATHY (EARNSHAW)?

Luigi finished in the lead with $20,800. Katrina was next with $11,800 and Darin was in third place with $11,000. All clues were shown.

ALL of the contestants got Final Jeopardy! right.

WHAT IS A LASER?

The above video traces the history of the laser (an acronym for “light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation”). It begins in 1916 as a concept from Albert Einstein then jumps to 1960 for the invention of the Ruby laser and the Healy laser. It dates the laser’s first use in reading bar codes to 1975 (2:37); and gives 1998 (3:42) as the year that it was used for storing information on CD discs. Another article I saw on Laserchirp says the first commercial audio CD was a recording of Claudio Arrau performing Chopin Waltzes released in 1982, and, a year later, a CD of ABBA’s ‘The Visitors” became the first popular music CD made available to the public. (Don’t ask me why there are so many conflicting dates– I haven’t got a clue!)

It’s also odd that the video skips over all the research and developments that occurred in the 1940s and 1950s, but that is covered in “December 1958: Invention of the Laser” on APS.org.

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Darin bet $2,994. He finished with $13,994.

Katrina bet $9,001 and she finished with $20,801.

Luigi bet $2,601 and won the game with $23,401. Luigi de Guzman is the new Jeopardy! champ who will be returning for the first game of Season 39!

A triple stumper from each round:

ISLANDS & PENINSULAS ($200) Michigan is all about peninsulas; the Old Mission & the Leelanau are sub-peninsulas of this one that takes up most of the state

“C”HARACTER STUDY ($2000) Members of this family in works by William Faulkner include Benjy, Quentin & Caddy

More clues on Page 2

2 years ago: Only ONE of the players got this FJ in “Women Playwrights”

1 of 3 women who won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in the 1980s show

WHO IS BETH HENLEY, MARSHA NORMAN or WENDY WASSERSTEIN?

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