Answers to the Internet Challenge

Answers to the Internet Challenge

The Questions
In the order tackled...

SPORTS: Who won the 1952 Brownlow medal?
- Entered +"Brownlow medal" +1952 into AltaVista
- Ran into some dead links but after a few stops came across the unofficial homepage for the Richmond Tigers
- Ans: Roy Wright, winner in 1952 and 1954.
- Entering +"Brownlow" +"Wright" into AltaVista yielded confirmation at the Tiger Statistics page
- The Official AFL (Australian Football League) homepage states the following about the Brownlow medal:
  Named after a former prominent Geelong administrator Charles Brownlow, is generally regarded as the AFL's highest individual award, it is awarded to the fairest and best player(s) in the home-and-away series on votes cast by the field umpires. Players found guilty by the AFL Tribunal of an offence (other than time-wasting) are ineligible to win.
  Unfortunately I could not find a list of past winners at their site!
SPORTS: What individual won the most doubles and mixed doubles titles at Wimbledon?
- Just on a whim, let's check a guess at the organization's homepage: www.wimbledon.org.
- From the Championships History page, link to Records
- Ans: E. M. Ryans, 12 time winner of Ladies' Doubles and 7 time winner of Mixed Doubles; also H. L. Doherty and R. F. Doherty were 8 time winners of Gentlemen's Doubles;
NATURE: What is the airspeed of an African swallow and why is it relevant in cinematography?
- Let's try a different search engine -- infoseek accepts specific questions; enter "What is the airspeed of an African swallow?"
- Summaries of the numerous sites found indicate that Scene 1 of Monty Python and The Holy Grail includes a bit revolving around coconuts and migratory habits of swallows...
POLITICS: What is the most recent Supreme court decision clarifying the issue of "double jeopardy"?
- For legal matters, there is a specialized web search tool at FindLaw which I ran across in an online newspaper article during the Challenge.
- Entering "double jeopardy" into the full-text search of the Supreme Court Opinions page yielded 100 possibilities.
- Ans: United States vs. Vernon Watts (1997).
- (Another useful Supreme Court Database is Oyez.)
CELEBRITIES: How tall is Pierce Brosnan?

After casting about some, I decided to try Magellan Internet Guide, where one may search their reviewed sites. I am looking for a "fan club" with a good web presence.
Selecting Entertainment as a category and entering "Pierce Brosnan" into Reviewed Sites Only finds an excellent James Bond site.
I e-mailed, the owner of the site, at 1am with the following message:
Subject: Height of Pierce Brosnan? I have a friend who would like to know his height. You seem to have the definitive web site for PB and I thought that maybe you could help...
At 8am I received the following reply:
Subject: Re: Height of Pierce Brosnan? He is supposed to be 6'1"

Ans: 6'1"
FOOD: What is the recipe for Coca-Cola?

Relying on my favorite search tool AltaVista, I entered +coca-cola +recipe; nothing leapt out at me.
Tried again with +coca-cola +formula and found the following page in Finland: Is it Coke?
Ans:
30 pounds of sugar 2 gallons of water 2 pints of lime juice 4 ounces of citrate of caffeine 2 ounces of citric acid 1 ounce of extract of vanilla 6 drams (3/4 ounce) of fluid extract of cola 6 drams of fluid extract of coca

Looks too simple! If you do not like that answer, the following text from an article about Trade Secrets will explain why a better answer cannot be found on the Internet:
...The formula for Coca-Cola is one of the best-kept trade secrets in the world. Known as Merchandise 7X, it has been tightly-guarded since it was first invented 100 years ago. It is known by only two persons within the Coca-Cola Company and is kept in a security vault at the Trust Company Bank in Atlanta, Georgia, which can only be opened by a resolution from the company's Board of Directors. The company refuses to allow the identity of those persons who know the formula to be disclosed or to allow those persons to fly in the same airplane at the same time...
Renewing my search, entering "Merchandise 7X" kicked up Coca-Cola: A trade secret that isn't that recommends a bood entitled For God, Country, and Coca-Cola.
Checking the online catalog for the UD Library shows that it's available in in the stacks. Off to the library...
Even though the library computer claimed that the book was available, it could not be found in the stacks. Since I have been commuting to UPenn several times per week I decided to check Franklin, their online catalog. Yes, it's available; off again to the library...
In the appendix several formulas are laid out, including one found in company archives by the author while researching his book. I'm not going to list them here in keeping with the spirit of "the world's best kept trade secret"!

NATURE: Who named Ostrinia nubitalis?

Entered nubitalis into Excite (was not sure of spelling of first word):
First page found was in spanish; using the browser Find command I was able to ascertain that the first word was Ostrinia.
Entered "Ostrinia nubitalis" into Excite
Second page found associated "Hubner" (discoverer?) and the common name "European corn borer" with our subject.
Entered "European corn borer" into Excite
Found The European Corn Borer Home Page, sponsored by the Dept. of Entomology at Iowa State Univ., a fairly definitive site (including lots of images!).
In the Introduction Page, again I found Hubner (with an umlaut) in parenthesis behind the name.
I decided to try AskRef, UD Library's online reference service:
To: askref@www.lib.udel.edu (AskRef) I have been asked the following question: "Who named Ostrinia nubitalis?" I believe that this is the scientific name for the European corn borer. Would you be able to point me in the right direction? Thanks in advance.
The response came back less than four hours later:

From: AskRef <refreply@hawkins.lib.udel.edu> Subject: Re: Askref Question [WWW] Dear Dr. Watson: According to _Nomenclator Zoologicus_ the Ostrinia nubilalis was named by Huebner. The _History of Entomology_ further identifies this person as J. Hubner (with an umlaut over the "u") (1761-1826). The attached bibliographic citation from _WorldCat_ further identifies him as Jacob Hubner. I hope this information is helpful, and thanks for using our AskRef service. ACCESSION: 36831875 AUTHOR: Hubner, Jacob, 1761-1826. TITLE: Sammlung europaeischer Schmetterlinge errichtet von Jacob Hubner in Augsburg. 1805. PLACE: [Augsburg, YEAR: 1796 1838

Ans: Jacob Hubner (with an umlaut!)
UPDATE: Turns out that I couldn't read the spelling on the last word either! Should be Ostrinia nubilalis -- luckily others misspell the word in the same way that I did, so that my searches eventually led me to the right spots...

FOREIGN LANGUAGES: Find a language related to Basque.

Entered +Basque +language into AltaVista.
Found answer on second page, entitled "Euraska, the Language of the Basque People", presented as part of "Get to Know Sebastian-Gipuzkoa", a local guide book for the Basque region.
Ans: Euskara
UPDATE: I misinterpreted the question! A quote from the site listed above reflects the true spirit of the question:
The Basque language is an inflected language whose origin is still somewhat puzzling. The fact that it is not an Indoeuropean language, and shows no ressemblance to languages in neighbouring countries, has led to the formulation of a variety of hypotheses to explain its existence. Owing to some similarities with the Georgian language, some linguists think it could be related to languages from the Caucasus. Others relate the language to non-Arabic languages from the north of Africa. One of the most likely hypotheses argues that the Basque language developed "in situ", in the land of the primitive Basques.
NATURE: What's unusual about Bonobo monkeys?

Any search tool (using +Bonobo) will find numerous references to the Bonobo, a very interesting animal indeed!
First page shown by AltaVista: Bonobo Sex and Society, by Frans de Waal, Sci. Am., March 1995:
The strongest social bonds are those among females, although females also bond with males. The status of a male depends on the position of his mother, to whom he remains closely bonded for her entire life.
Fifth page shown by HotBot: The Block Bonobo Foundation (fairly graphic!):
[Bonobos] use sex to ease stress, to maintain relationships, as a form of commercial exchanges (e.g., I'll give you a kiss if you give me a banana), and to reduce violent conflict.

Third page shown by : Bonobo Protection Fund:
...bonobos form strong social ties to each other though sexual interactions. ...Continued research has made it clear that overt sexuality is an integral part of bonobo sociality. Continued study of sexuality in bonobos, who do not share our human cultural taboos and mores, may help us to better understand the role of sex as a social phenomena apart from reproduction.
Ans: Social and sexual conventions
GEOGRAPHY: What was the population of Tana-Tuva in 1985?

Started with the Britannica Online, searched for Tana-Tuva
Found:

Tuva, also called Tyva, or Tannu-Tuva, republic in south-central Siberia, Russia. Tuva borders northwestern Mongolia and occupies the basin of the upper Yenisey River. ... Pop. (1992 est.) 306,000.

If you are interested in Tuva you will be pleased to explore the Friends of Tuva on the World Wide Web site. There is an interesting connection to Richard Feynman, the late physicist, but maybe you already knew this and were trying to amuse me... Anyways, they list the population as 308,000 (about 64 percent Tuvan and about 32 percent Russian) in their FAQ.
Ans: ~300,000
SHOPPING: Why did Lands End stop selling pocket t-shirts?

Went to Lands' End web site by guessing the URL .
Used their local search service; searched for pocket, Category: Product, Look in: Product Description only
Ans: They didn't! -- both Men's and Women's Short-Sleeved Super-T's are available with pockets, $15.00
GEOGRAPHY: What is the most common last name in the world?

Entered +"most common last name" +world into InfoSeek
Found Miscellaneous Useless Facts and Trivia which claimed that CHANG is the most common last name. This will need confirmation...
For U.S. last names, the U.S. Census Bureau provides a Name Search tool for frequency and ranking of last and first names; as you may have expected SMITH is the most common last name in the U.S., with a frequency of 1.0% of the population.
POLITICS: What's the northernmost Klan headquarters?

I became uncomfortably lost in my wanderings through cyberspace in trying to answer this question so I will list just a few starting points...
The Office of International Criminal Justice at U. Illinois, Chicago presents KKK excerpts from their book "Extremist Groups".
Locally, American Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, Realm of Delaware -- an address list of AK-KKK state offices
Entered +"KKK" +Canada into Excite on a hunch and found an archived article about the KKK in Saskatchewan in the World-Spectator
Entered +"KKK" +Alaska into Excite and found Hate Groups in the U.S. from HateWatch -- no groups currently identified in Alaska.
Ans: Somewhere in Canada...
HEALTH: How many adult Americans who take vitamin and mineral supplements do not need them?

For a change, I went directly to the UD Library's Networked Databases
First tried Health Reference Center
Searched for vitamin mineral as keywords; received 63 "hits", including:
When patients ask about vitamin-mineral supplements, from Patient Care, Sept 15, 1996 v 30 n 14 p 85:
Analysis of current federal and professional nutrition guidelines reveals that a healthy patient following balanced diet should receive ample vitamins. A screening procedure is provided to identify lifestyles and medical conditions that could indicate a need for vitamin supplements.
Position of the American Dietetic Association: vitamin and mineral supplementation, from J. Am. Dietetic Assoc., Jan. 1996, v96 n1 p73:
The American Dietetic Assn believes that the best way to promote maximum health and minimize the risk of chronic disease is to get enough nutrients from different foods. Vitamin and mineral supplementation is desirable only if it is well-accepted, peer-examined and proven to be safe and effective through scientific studies.
Glancing through the numerous articles and abstracts, weighing the type of journal and publisher, tended to support the following answer, in my opinion...
Ans: Most, esp. those having "normal" diets
NATURE: What is the probability that a female white-tailed deer will give birth to triplets (or more)?

Entered +white +deer +triplet into Excite
The Pennsylvania Game Commission states in Bird and Mammals of Pennsylvania:
Well nourished females (does) often have twin or triplet fawns every year. -- admittedly qualitative...
I had hoped that the Biological Sciences database from our library would help, but it didn't...
GEOGRAPHY: How many Tibetan refuges live in India?

Entered +"Tibetan refugees" +India into HotBot
Found Tibetan refugees at Dharamsala, India at the United Nations 50 communities site:
Over 80,000 Tibetans led by their religious and temporal leader, His Holiness the Dalai Lama, have fled the Chinese occupation of their country and established a refugee community at Dharamsala in India.
National Report on Tibet Women from the Tibetan Resource Directory:
There are now more than 130,000 Tibetan refugees scattered over India and the world.
Entered +Dharamsala +population and found Tibet in Exile at a Glance from The Magic of Tibet:
POPULATION: Total: 131,000. India 100,000; Nepal 25,000; Bhutan 2,000; Switzerland 2,000; Canada 600; United States 1500.
Ans: ~100,000
POLITICS: How many political organizations signed the peace treaty in Guatemala in 1996?

Again, calling on the Networked Databases, I used the Expanded Academic ASAP database. Entered Guatemala peace and followed the abstracts...
New York Times, Dec. 30, 1996:
Guatemalan National Revolutionary Unity and members of the Guatemalan government sign peace accord...
The Economist, Jan 4, 1997 v342 n7998 p45(2):
On Sunday, December 29th, President Alvaro Arzu and rebel leaders signed a treaty that is meant to end, definitively, 36 years of civil war...
Entered +"Guatemalan National Revolutionary Unity" into AltaVista:
Found The Guatemalan Peace Accords: Assessment and Implications for the Future (a WOLA brief dated Dec. 20, 1996:

Looked around the Washington Office on Latin America site; went to their Links page, and went to the MINUGUA site, which is the United Nations Missions for the Verification of Human Rights in Guatemala.
Finally found a copy of the Peace Agreement, actually in two parts, "Agreement on the Implementation, Compliance and Verification Timetable for the Peace Agreements" and "The Agreement on a Firm and Lasting Peace".
The first agreement was signed:
For the Government of Guatemala:
Gustavo PORRAS CASTEJON, Richard AITKENHEAD CASTILLO, Raquel ZELAYA ROSALES, Otto PREZ MOLINA Brigadier General,
For the Unidad Revolucionaria National Guatemalteca:
Jorge E. ROSAL MELENDEZ, Ricardo RAMREZ DE LEON (Commander Rolando MORN), Jorge Ismael SOTO GARCA, Ricardo ROSALES ROMN (Commander Pablo MONSANTO) (Carlos GONZALES)
For the United Nations:
Jean ARNAULT
Quoting from a U.N. letter:
The Agreement on a Firm and Lasting Peace (annex II) was signed in the National Palace of Guatemala City on 29 December 1996, in a formal ceremony attended by President Alvaro Arz�, by the Heads of State of numerous nations and by my predecessor, Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, who was, in addition, a signatory to the Agreement.
Ans: Three, the government of Guatemala, the URNG, and the UN.
GEOGRAPHY: How many girls named Emily were born in 1994?

Optimistically entered +births +"United States" +1994 into AltaVista and found Your Pregancy
From Births in the United States:
There are nearly eight live births every minute of the day in the United States. In 1994 alone there were 3,952,767 live births.
Entered "popular baby names" into AltaVista and found the Illinois Department of Public Health Vital Statistics page.
Birth Statistics and Most Popular Names for Babies in Illinois gives the following data for number of Emily's born:
1990 956, rank 12, total births: 195,499 = percentage 0.489 1991 1083 9 194,066 0.558 1992 1087 5 190,923 0.569 1993 1181 4 190,710 0.619 1994 1157 3 189,182 0.612 1995 1169 3 185,801 0.629

0.612% of 4 million is 24,500
Ans:~25,000 to the extent that Illinois represents the entire U.S. Of course, other countries also need to be considered...
Relying again on the the U.S. Census Bureau Name Search -- Emily is the 99th ranked name in the U.S. with a probability of 0.00208. Given the current population in the U.S. of about 267 million, that means that there are more than 555,000 Emily's in the U.S.!
INTERNET: Resources for online publication process; how to find the journals?

Finally one for Yahoo!, an index of web sites by classification
Entered electronic journal into the search tool
Found many examples of online journals -- not just electronic copies of journals, but full-fledged refereed electronic journals (no "hard" publication).
Ans: e.journal, an excellent compilation of electronic journals.
INTERNET: What's the time to access the web so that transfers are the fastest?

Running out of time, so let's see what story we can tell from the Web Server Statistics for the Dept. of Physics and Astronomy.
Out of almost 600,000 requests since Dec. 1, 1996, representing 4600 megabytes of data transferred, the best time to access our server is 5 am.
Ans: Between midnight and 8:00 am EST, or weekends.
INTERNET: What can you not find out about George Watson via the web?

Using Switchboard you can find my home address, including 9-digit ZIPcode, although it helps to know that I live in Delaware, since there are 755 George Watsons and 46 George H. Watsons listed.
Using PeopleFind with that information can uncover my two home telephone numbers and my wife's name.
Using Four11 with that information, you can find my e-mail address, and from its domain name, the institution where I work.
By using the UD People button from the UD homepage, anyone can find my e-mail address, office phone number, and department.
With the UNIX finger command (ghw@udel.edu) you can find out if I am logged on or when I last read my e-mail.
With the X.500 finger (George.H.Watson@udel.edu) you can find my appointment at the University
SIS+ access via the administrative computer (available to many faculty and possibly a few teenagers in Europe) can kick up many things... My birthday, SSN, a former address, race, and religion from my student records; My teaching schedule and work load from my faculty records; There are online records for 340 Watsons, but if you were diligent you could find my two children by looking at next of kin.
Search tools will find my personal homepage from which you can determine some of my non-professional interests. You might even run across my Dewar's Profile and a fish story.
From my online resume you can ascertain my educational background and my research interests.
You might try searching the Usenet newsgroups with DejaNews to see if I have been posting messages lately. Stalking others in this way has been getting some press...
Ans: With the right computer access, only my inner most secrets... Is the Acme SuperCard used to archive all my acquistions? How long are my check and credit card records online? What kind of files have the telemarketers put online on my behalf?
INTERNET: Prove to us that your answers are correct and that you did not put them there.

Ans: I hope you are convinced by the process demonstrated!

Ran out of time or was unsuccessful in my attempts at the following questions:
HEALTH: In what ways are foreign viruses added to our local environmment?
FOOD: What are all the ingredients of V-8 juice?
HEALTH: Who popularized the use of marijuana in the United States?
NATURE: What is the number of Canadian geese that have decided not to fly South?

Comments, suggestions, or requests to ud-itue@udel.edu.
"http://www.udel.edu/inst/may22/answers.html"
Last updated February 9, 1999.
Copyright Univ. of Delaware, 1999.