University Challenge S53E18 UEA v Open University

APPLAUSE ANNOUNCER: University Challenge. Asking the questions, Amol Rajan. Hello and welcome to another match in the second round of this year’s University Challenge. Last time, we saw Trinity College, Cambridge, become the first team to qualify for the quarters. And if tonight’s teams want to join them, they must win.

This round offers no reprieves for losers. Luckily for the Open University, however, the first round of the competition does have a repechage, which gave them a second chance to progress, after losing their first match to Hertford College, Oxford. Their final score of 155 was one of the highest losing scores

Of the round and secured them a playoff against Oxford Brookes, which they won by 255 points to 155. They’ve answered very well so far on Film, Theatre and Cocktails, but have looked a little shaky on Fine Art. Let’s meet them again. Hi, I’m Ellie, I live in Oxfordshire and I’m studying Nursing.

Hi, I’m Mike Holt. I’m from Wilmslow, in Cheshire, and I’m studying towards the Open degree. And their captain. Hello, I’m Anne Gavaghan. I’m from London and I’m studying Art and Architectural History. Hi, I’m James Davidson. I’m originally from Fraserburgh in Aberdeenshire and I’m studying English Literature. APPLAUSE

By comparison, the team from the University of East Anglia got here the easy way. In their first round match, they faced a capable team from the University of Strathclyde and beat them comfortably by 235 points to 125. Along the way, they scored full marks on bonus sets

About Quantum Mechanics, Lost Films, the music producer Trevor Horn, and Celebrations of Autumn, but fared less well on UK Geography and Portuguese History. Let’s meet them for the second time. Hi, I’m Melissa Shiress. I’m from London and I’m doing a PhD on Pacific Collections in National Museum, Scotland.

Hi, I’m Bryony Yates, I’m originally from Wolverhampton and I’m doing a PhD in Plant Biology. And their captain. Hi, I’m Owen Tobin. I’m originally from Nottingham and I’m studying Medicine. Hi, I’m Matthew Jennings. I’m from King’s Lynn and I’m studying Philosophy. APPLAUSE It’s good to see you all.

The rules haven’t changed, so let’s get straight on with it. Fingers on buzzers. Here is your first starter for ten. The harms caused by the insecticide DDT, used to kill mosquitoes and fire ants, were a focal point of which book by Rachel Carson? Silent Spring. It is Silent Spring from 1962, yes.

Your bonuses, then, Open, are three questions on blue plaques in Birmingham. A blue plaque in Edgbaston marks the residence in Birmingham, from 1902 to 1910, of which author born in South Africa in 1892? Kipling? Kipling, yeah. Kipling. No, it was Tolkien. A plaque on St Albans Church commemorates Kate Elizabeth Bunce

And her sister, Myra. Born in the 1850s, they were exponents of what artistic movement? Arts and Crafts, maybe. Art Nouveau, Art Deco… I feel like it’s um, free, free dress, but I can’t remember the name of it, the… Arts and Crafts. Correct. OK.

The blue plaque on the lodge of the former Heathfield Hall in Handsworth states that it was the home of which steam engineer, inventor and scientist born in 1736? His name was Watt… – Watt, Watt, yeah. Watt. It is James Watt. Yes. Another starter question now. According to its creator,

The design of the title character of which 2014 horror film was inspired by The Man In The Beaver Hat? The Babadook. It is The Babadook, yes. Your three bonuses, Open, are on the 2022 Mercury Music Prize. Born Simbiatu Ajikawo, which London rapper and actor won the 2022 Mercury Prize for her fourth studio…

Little Simz. It is Little Simz. The 2022 shortlist included Oscar-nominated actor Jessie Buckley for her collaborative album with Bernard Butler. The latter won the Mercury Prize in 1993 as a member of which band? Suede. Suede is right, yeah. Also shortlisted was Rebecca Taylor for her critically acclaimed album, Prioritise Pleasure.

She performs… Self Esteem. It is Self Esteem, yes. Another starter question now. The most densely populated region of what country of the Americas is a high plateau known as the Mesa Central or the Mesa de Anahuac, meaning land on the edge of the water and referring to its…

Peru? No, I’m afraid you lose five points. ..and referring to its numerous shallow lakes. Cities in this region include Queretaro, Leon and Guadalajara. Colombia. No, it’s Mexico. Another starter question. This is a quote, “Keep still, you little devil, or I’ll cut your throat.” These words appear in the first… Great Expectations.

It is Great Expectations. Well done, very impressive. Your bonuses, then, Open, are questions on computation. What two-word term describes an ideal computation that takes binary inputs, usually two, and produces a single binary output? Logical, maybe? Logical. No, I did ask for a two-word term

And “logic gate” is what I was looking for there. Which two-input logic gate returns one if and only if both inputs are one, otherwise it returns zero? AND, I think. AND. Correct. Which two-input logic gate returns zero if and only if both inputs are zero, otherwise it returns one? Um… What if…?

I don’t know. OR? OR. OR is correct, yes. APPLAUSE Another starter question. What nine-letter word can precede all of the following – conditioning, in psychology, to describe the process by which a neutral stimulus comes to elicit a particular response… Pavlovian. No, and I’m afraid you lose five points.

..economics to describe the 18th and 19th century… Classical. Classical is correct, yeah. Your bonuses, then, UEA, are questions on films whose titles are linked by a word. What short word completes the English title of a 1957 East German film for children, broadcast on the BBC in 1964,

Which tells the story of a haughty princess and her spurned suitor? The Singing, Ringing… what? WHISPERS: Tree. What? Tree. Tree. It is Tree. Written and directed by Shola Amoo, which film in 2019 features Sam Adewunmi as Femi, a young British-Nigerian boy who has returned to London to live with his birth mother,

Having grown up in foster care in rural Lincolnshire? ..with a tree in it… Any, like, African trees. I can’t remember the name. Say baobab tree. What? Is it Baobab Tree? Baobab Tree. No, it’s The Last Tree. Awarded the Palme d’Or in 2011, which film by Terrence Malick mixes impressionistic scenes

From an architect’s childhood… The Tree Of Life. It is The Tree Of Life. Well done. Another starter question, and this is a picture round. For your picture starter, you will see a map of UK postcode areas with a single one highlighted in red.

For ten points, name the chemical element that shares its symbol with that postcode. Lanthanum. Lanthanum is right, yes. CLAPPING CONTINUES Your picture starts to showed the Lancaster… Nice to get some applause from the other side. They’re clearly impressed, as are we all. Your picture starts to show the Lancaster postcode area,

Whose postcode has the same two letters as a symbol for the element, lanthanum. Your picture bonuses will be three more areas that share postcodes with elemental symbols. This time you need to name both the element and the city that gives its name to the postcode area. Firstly… Oh, is that Bristol?

No, no. Bristol’s. Bath… Bath and Barium? It looks like it. Bath and Barium? Bath and Barium. Correct, well done. Secondly… Oh, that’s Colchester, isn’t it? Oh, yeah. Colchester. What’s CO? Cobalt. It’s Colchester and Cobalt. Correct. And finally… Oh, that’s… It could be Portsmouth, it could be Brighton. BR is… Bromine. Brighton and Bromine?

Bad luck. It’s Portsmouth and Polonium. Another starter question now. I need a specific single-word term for a field of study here. All born in the later 18th century, William Smith, Georges Cuvier and Mary Anning… Geology. No, and I’m afraid you lose five points. Palaeontology. Palaeontology is correct, yes.

Geology just wasn’t quite specific enough. Your bonuses, Open, are on the novels of Virginia Woolf. In each case, give the title of the novel from the description. First, published in 1931, a formally experimental work consisting largely of successive brief monologues from six main characters interspersed with lyrical third-person descriptions of a coastal landscape

At different times of day. Nominate Davidson. The Lighthouse. No, that was The Waves. Oh. OK. Secondly, published in 1922, a novel that has been described as an elegy for Woolf’s brother, Thoby, the title character… Nominate Davidson. Jacob’s Room. Correct. Finally, in Woolf’s own words,

“This is going to be fairly short, to have father’s character done “complete in it, and mother’s, and St Ives. “But the centre is father’s character, sitting in a boat “reciting We Perished, Each Alone, while he crushes…” Nominate Ellie. To The lighthouse. That one is To The Lighthouse, yeah. Another starter question now.

In textile design, the buta, or boteh motif, is more commonly known by the name of which Renfrewshire town situated… Paisley. It is Paisley, yes. Your bonuses, then. Three questions on plains. That’s plains as in P-L-A-I-N-S. The low hills and escarpments, known as the Sandstone Ridge,

Run from Helsby to Malpas across the eponymous plain of which English county? No idea. Salisbury? Salisbury. It’s Cheshire. The coastal plain in West Lancashire between the River Ribble and Morecambe Bay has what short name? A borough of the same name has its headquarters at Lytham St Annes. Any, any…? I have no idea.

Pass. The Fylde. Evacuated during World War II, the village of Imber is a former settlement on which plain in southern England now used largely for military exercises? That might be Salisbury Plain. Salisbury Plain. That is Salisbury Plain. Well done. Another starter question. Based on the coat of arms of the House of Babenberg,

The flag of which European country is described in heraldic terms as “Gules, one bar Argent”? When flown by the government, an eagle is included in the centre. Moldova? No. Austria? It is Austria. Yes. Your three bonus questions, Open, are on pollen. Of use for example in the study of ancient climates,

What single word term denotes the study of pollen grains or spores, either from living plants or from fossils? No idea. Paleon-sporeology? Paleon-sporeology. No, it’s palynology. Ohhh! Next, in angiosperms, pollen is produced on sac-like structures known as microsporangia, located on what particular part of the stamen of a flower? Anther? Anther.

Correct. In gymnosperms, pollen is produced on the male strobilus, a collection of scales and bracts known by what short common name? Stem. No, it’s cones. Another starter question now. Following her debut novel, The Rehearsal, which author… Eleanor Catton. Wow. Yes, it is Eleanor Catton. Well done.

Three questions for you, Open, on British Prime Ministers. All three died in office in the 19th century. Who died in 1806 during his second period in office? He had earlier served as prime minister… Nominate Davidson. Pitt the Younger. It is. Who succeeded the Earl of Liverpool as Prime Minister in 1827,

Dying in office after less than four months? Canning. Canning, Canning. Canning. It is George Canning, yes. Which Prime Minister died in office in 1865? Nicknamed Pan, he was three times Foreign Secretary between 18… Nominate Davidson. Palmerston. It is Palmerston, yes, well done. Another starter question now.

Quote, “My life has been dominated by my differences “with John Maynard Keynes.” These are the words of which economist, joint winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics in 1974? Friedrich Hayek. It is Hayek, yes, exactly right. Your bonuses, then, UEA, are three questions on the French artist Marie Laurencin.

In October 1912, several paintings by Laurencin were included in in the Salon de la Section d’Or, a notable exhibition of works from which major art movement? Other featured artists include Albert Gleizes and Jean Metzinger. What year was it, do he say? Did he say 1812 or 1912? 18. I’m not sure.

Just, just… No, no, 1812. It would be, what’s the sort of the… THEY CONFER Realism, maybe? Realism? Cubism. Which Italian-born French author is depicted at the centre of a 1909 group portrait by Laurencin? His works include the poetry collection Calligrammes and the surrealist play The Breasts of Tiresias. No? Pass.

Apollinaire. And Laurencin’s work for the stage includes set and costume design for the Ballet Russes 1924 production of Les Biches, a one-act ballet by which French composer? Debussy. Debussy. No, it’s Poulenc. Another starter question now, and it’s a music starter. You’re going to hear an extract from a piece of classical music.

For ten points, name its composer. MUSIC PLAYS Beethoven. That was Beethoven, well done. That was an extract from Beethoven’s Symphony No.6, which is notable for containing five movements rather than the more usual four. Your bonuses are three more symphonies that have five movements, Open. Name the composer of each. Firstly… MUSIC PLAYS

Maybe Berlioz, Symphonie fantastique has five movements. OK, nominate Davidson. Berlioz? It is Berlioz. Secondly… MUSIC PLAYS It’s kind of modern, maybe. Debussy? Mahler? Mahler? Just try it. Mahler. No, it’s Vaughan Williams. And finally this Russian composer. MUSIC PLAYS Sounds like Tchaikovsky but I don’t know which one. MUSIC DROWNS OUT CONFERRING Tchaikovsky.

It is Tchaikovsky. Another starter question. Plenty of time, UEA. Which Greek letter represents all of these? A protein that forms tangles in Alzheimer’s disease, a negatively charged elementary subatomic particle with spin one half, and, in mechanics, rotational force or moment of force? Tau? Tau is correct, yes.

Your bonuses, then, UEA, are on people with the initials DD, for example, Doris Day. Give the person’s forename and surname in each case. First, an 18th century French philosopher. From 1747 to 1772, he was editor of the collective project known in English as the Encyclopaedia or Classified Dictionary… Nominate Jennings. Denis Diderot.

Correct. Secondly, a US social reformer born in 1802. She was a prominent advocate and campaigner for mental health care. Anyone know? Pass. Dorothea Dix. Finally, a US philosopher born in 1942. His works include Consciousness Explained and Intuition Pumps And Other Tools… Nominate Jennings. Daniel Dennett. It is Daniel Dennett, yes.

Between 1814 and 1846, a plaster statue of what animal stood in the Place de la Bastille in Paris? Elephant? It is an elephant, yes. Three questions for you on harmonic motion in physics. First, when the force driving a harmonic oscillator approaches the natural frequency of the oscillator, what phenomenon occurs

Whereby the amplitude of the oscillations increases significantly? Nominate Holt. Resonance. Resonance is correct. In mechanics, a damped harmonic oscillator is one that experiences which force in addition to the driving and restoring forces? Inertia or something? I don’t know what you’d call that. Maybe inertia. Inertia. No, it’s friction. An oscillator that returns to

The equilibrium position as quickly as possible without oscillating is said to have what level of damping? Maximum? Maximum. It’s critical damping. Bad luck. Another starter question. Coined by Aristotle, what two-word term refers to fundamental propositions or assumptions that stand alone and cannot be deduced from any other proposition or assumption?

They underpin a way of thinking that starts with breaking down a problem to its core parts and reasoning from that point. Anyone want to have a go? Instinctual propositions? No. UEA? Nope? I’ll tell you. It’s first principles. Another starter question. What two-word phrase links a 1937 play by the Jamaican writer

Una Marson about a pair of student siblings from the imaginary British colony of Novoka and a 1979 album by The Clash that includes the tracks Train In Vain, Spanish Bombs and The Guns Of Brixton? London Calling? London Calling is correct, yes. Well done. Your bonuses then, UEA,

Are three questions on the influence of a literary work. In a novel of 1752 by Charlotte Lennox, heroine Arabella is a sheltered young woman who wishes her life was like the romances she reads. The title names her The Female what, referring to a fictional character from a work of 1605?

Robinson Crusoe? Robinson Crusoe. Robinson Crusoe. No, it’s Quixote, as in Don Quixote. The 1982 novel Monsignor Quixote is a late work by which British author? Set in La Mancha in the shadow of Francoism, the title character is a parish priest who is promoted due to a clerical error.

Orwell? He was in… I don’t know. Orwell. It’s Graham Greene. Finally, a metafictional novel about an Indian-born writer who creates the television-obsessed character, Ismail Smile, Quichotte is a 2019 novel by which author, born in Mumbai in 1947? Any…any Indian writers? Anything? Karunatilaka? Nominate Yates. Karunatilaka? No, it’s Rushdie. Salman Rushdie.

Another starter question now. The two-word name of which former administrative area of Buckinghamshire appears in the name of one of the offices to which a Member of Parliament may apply in order to indirectly resign from their position? Lord Lieutenant? No. Royal Barking? No, it’s Chiltern Hundreds,

As in the Steward of the Chiltern Hundreds. Another starter question. What surname is shared by a scientist and writer whose books include A Brief History Of Everyone Who Ever Lived and How To Argue With A Racist… Er, oh… Sorry. I’m afraid you lose five points. I need an immediate answer with starter questions.

..and How To Argue With A Racist and a New Zealand-born scientist who won the Nobel Prize for his work on radioactive decay and the concept of radioactive half-life? Rutherford? It is Rutherford, yes. As in Adam and then Ernest. Bonus questions for you, Open, are three questions on works by the anthropologist Lila Abu-Lughod.

Abu-Lughod’s early books, Writing Women’s Worlds and Veiled Sentiments, are ethnographies of which Arabic-speaking nomadic people? She spent nearly two years living with a tribe in the western desert of Egypt. Is it the Tuareg? Yeah, go for it. Tuareg. No, it’s the Bedouin.

What single word completes the title of a 2003 book by Abu-Lughod that questions dominant Western narratives of Muslim women’s experiences – “Do Muslim Women Need…” what? Education… Education? Education? No, it’s Saving. The 2007 book Nakba, co-edited with Ahmad H Sa’di, is a collection of essays on which state,

Focusing particularly on its people’s memories of events of 1948? Palestine? It is Palestine, yes. Another starter question now. In the 1890s, William Edward Barclay became the first person to have managed which two prominent football clubs, whose home grounds lie at the opposite ends of Stanley Park? In 2021… Liverpool and Everton?

It is Everton and Liverpool, yes. Your bonus questions, then, are three questions on African leaders. So, Milton Margai was the first Prime Minister of which country when it achieved independence in 1961? THEY CONFER Botswana. No, Sierra Leone. Which prominent Pan-Africanist was deposed in 1960, only a few months after taking office?

He was later executed by a firing squad under Belgian command. Anybody from the Congo? Yeah. Yeah, but do we know any leaders? I don’t know. Nyerere. No, it’s Patrice Lumumba. Who became Prime Minister of the Gold Coast colony in 1952 and led his country to independence five years later? Gold Coast, anybody?

Kwame Nkrumah. Yes, of Ghana. Well done. Another starter question now and it’s a picture round. For your picture starter, you’re going to see a painting. For ten points, simply name the artist. Van Gogh. It is Vincent van Gogh, yes. From the picture starter, you saw van Gogh’s Wheatfield With Crows,

One of the paintings discussed at length in John Berger’s Ways Of Seeing. Your bonuses are three more paintings discussed in that work. Again, name the artist in each case. First, referenced in Berger’s discussion of the female nude and the male gaze. Woman with Ermine? I don’t know. No. No. Woman with Ermine.

No, it’s the artist that I need. I can’t accept that. Sorry. The correct answer is Rubens. Secondly, examined in relation to the temporality of paintings. Oh, Bruegel. Bruegel. Bruegel. It is Pieter Bruegel the Elder, yeah. Finally, this work, the subject of a discussion about reproduction and restoration. Da Vinci. Nominate Davidson. Da Vinci?

It is da Vinci, yes. Another starter question now. What attribute of an object can be assessed using a Munsell chart, a system developed in the early 20th century by Albert H Munsell, a US art instructor and painter? Colour? Colour is correct, yes. Your bonuses are three questions on disaccharides or double sugars.

First, which sugar is combined with glucose to form sucrose, a common disaccharide that is the main component of white sugar? No, no, it’s, erm… It’s fructose, isn’t it? Fructose. Fructose is correct. Lactose is a disaccharide composed of glucose bonded with which other monosaccharide… Galactose. Galactose. Galactose is correct.

Composed of two glucose molecules bonded together, which disaccharide… Maltose. Maltose is correct. Well done. Another starter question now. The characters Harpagon, Argan, Monsieur Jourdain are described respectively in the titles of theatrical works written by which French dramatist born Jean-Baptiste Poquelin… Moliere. It is Moliere, yeah. Well done.

Your bonuses then are three questions on Planet Earth and Middle-earth. Its spelling similar to that of the capital of Ethiopia from 1632 to 1855, which kingdom of Tolkien’s Middle-earth is the setting of the battle of the Pelennor Fields? Nominate Davidson. Gondor. Gondor is correct.

What word is common to the names of the capital of Gondor and a populous inland state of Brazil, capital Belo Horizonte? It’s Manaus? Minas. Nominee Davidson. Minas. Minas is correct. What word is common to the names of a large town near Morecambe Bay,

Noted for shipbuilding, at an area to the east of the old forest where Frodo is attacked by an undead figure? Barrow. Barrow? Barrow is correct. Four and a half minutes to go. Denoting a variety of quartz, what five-letter word links all of the following?

A nickname of the antiquities forger Edward Simpson, an early form of firearm, a city in Michigan beset by a much publicised water… Flint. Flint is correct. Your bonuses, UEA, are on writers associated with the BBC World Service radio programme Caribbean Voices between 1943 and 1958. Name each from the description.

First, a Nobel Laureate born in Castries in 1930, whose works include the verse novel Omeros. Some of his early poetry was broadcast on Caribbean Voices. I only know John Agard. Well, I’m guessing. Just guess. John… John Agard. No, it’s Walcott, Derek Walcott. Second, a Trinidad-born writer whose poem Lucky Lucre

Was featured on the programme in 1947. His major works include the 1956 novel The Lonely Londoners, notable for its use of a creolized English. Do you not know? We’ll go John Agard again. No, it’s Samuel Selvon. Finally, another Nobel Laureate who worked on Caribbean Voices as a presenter, interviewer and editor.

His novels include In A Free State and A House For Mr Biswas. John Agard again. No, that was Naipaul. Another starter question. In physics, what specific term describes the continuous random motion of microscopic solid particles when suspended in a fluid medium? Brownian motion. Brownian motion is correct.

Your bonuses then are questions on bicycle parts. First, what short term denotes the component that links the handlebars to the steerer of the fork? In linguistics, the same term means the part of a word to which grammatical inflections are attached. Stem? Yeah. Stem. Correct.

What five-letter word denotes the component that connects the pedals to the axle of the bottom bracket? This word also means a person who upholds eccentric or impractical ideas. Spunk? No. No. Spoke. It’s crank. What term indicates a U-shaped slot into which a wheel axle is fitted?

This word is also used of a person who has withdrawn from an endeavour, for example, a course of study. Dropout? Drop. Dropout. No, that’s not five letters. Oh. Erm… Flake? I don’t know. Flake. It’s dropout. It didn’t need to be five letters. Bad luck. So sorry.

Another starter question. Which Berkshire town lies at the western terminus of London’s new Elizabeth Line railway… Reading. It is Reading. Yes. Your bonuses then, Open, are three questions on CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research. First, what is the only non-European country granted full membership at CERN?

They had been an associate member since 2011 and gained full membership in 2014. United States? No, it’s Israel. Which Italian experimental particle physicist was the first woman to be appointed Director-General of CERN? In 2019, she became the first person to be appointed for a full second term. An Italian name.

Bucano. No, that was Fabiola Gianotti. CERN set up a theoretical study group under Niels Bohr at which university in northern Europe, before it joined the experimental groups at Geneva? University of Copenhagen. Correct. Another starter question. What is the smallest three-digit number that is a perfect square of a perfect square? 729? No.

It’s 256, ie 16 squared, which is 4 squared squared. Another starter question now. Established by DeWitt Wallace and Lila Acheson, which American periodical began regular publication in February 1922, with the explanation that each article had enduring value and interest in condensed and compact form? Reader’s Digest. It is Reader’s Digest, yes.

OK, your bonuses then, Open, are on plants mentioned in Tennyson’s poem, The Lady Of Shalott. In each case, give the name from the description. First, Hordeum vulgare, a cereal crop grown mainly for animal feed, Tennyson describes it as bearded after the bristly growths that protect the kernels. Maize?

Maize. Barley. A tree of the genus Salix, British species include grey, white, goat, crack and osier. Willow? Oh, yeah. Willow. Willow is correct. Secale cereale, a hardy cereal crop associated with cooler climates and poor soils. It’s the main ingredient of the pumpernickel bread. Rye. Rye. GONG Rye is correct and at the gong,

UEA have 130 points and Open have 265. And it’s incredibly decent of you to applaud at the end because you were up against a phenomenal team, weren’t you? Have you had a good time? Have you enjoyed it? Yes. Thank you. Thank you so much for coming. We’ve, we’ve loved having you. Open, wow.

An absolutely mega performance. And it should give you enormous confidence going into the next game. Does it? No. LAUGHTER That’s why we’re excited to see you again. So, well done. We are going to see you again. I hope you can join us next time. We’ll see you for another second round match,

But until then, it’s goodbye from UEA. ALL: Bye. Goodbye. It’s goodbye from the Open University. ALL: Goodbye. Bye. And it’s goodbye from me. Goodbye.