I had the pleasure last Saturday of being the MC for a “trivia night” competition at the Houston Senior Center.
The event was designed to benefit the Houston Friends of the Library, which is certainly a worthy cause for a fundraiser. Plenty of people attended (probably about 50) and
Friends of the Library members Robert and Sue Simpson did a fine job of compiling 100 questions for the competition (10 each in 10 categories), and as I read them into the microphone, I took the opportunity to add comments and observations related to my fondness of irony, sarcasm and general humor. I had a blast, and basically – as the clichés goes – fun was had by all.
But as I operated the power point computer while sitting with Robert Simpson (who acted as the official timer, making sure teams didn’t spend more than 30 seconds pondering their answers), I couldn’t help but be amazed at what was going on in the room.
To put it simply: People were answering lots of questions correctly.
After each “round” of 10 questions, a panel of three judges examined each team’s answer sheet. Then, team scores were announced – both for the round and cumulative.
The categories ranged from entertainment to science, geography, military history and more. No matter, though, because some team was always turning in eight, nine or even 10 correct answers. Sure, there were close to 10 people on some of the teams (and only two on others; that was kind of weird), but the fact that anyone at all would know which planet the moons Europa and Io revolve around or what the world’s smallest sovereign country is was impressive to me.
Mr. Simpson was equally amazed. We jointly concluded we were in the presence of some fairly well informed people.
And remember: These are folks from a podunk small town in flyover country. Perhaps the knowledge of people in such places isn’t limited (as some “city folk” might assume) to things like what channel airs reruns of The Andy Griffith Show or where the auctions will be held this weekend.
This bunch – representing a classic cross-section of residents in the heart of rural America – made that abundantly clear and wasn’t fazed by much at all. I heard a groan or two emanate from the tables after reading a few of the questions, but for the most part I heard more talking and sharing related to answering.
Some of the questions were designed to be easier than others.
Who was the chief engineer on the Starship Enterprise? Mr. Scott, or Scotty, of course.
Who had a teddy bear named Winnie the Pooh? That would be Christopher Robin, obviously.
Who declared the war on terror? Certainly that was George W. (Bush, that is).
But other questions were tough.
Where was the World War II crimes court? Um… (it’s Nuremberg, Germany).
What is Lee De Forest credited with inventing? I got nothin’ (it’s the triode).
How many moons did Galileo see orbiting Jupiter? Uhhhhh…(it’s four).
But regardless of whether a question was about a 1970s TV program, a scientist’s accomplishments or what size shoes a semi-famous Italian guy wore, someone almost inevitably would have the answer. In fact, I don’t think there was a single question that wasn’t correctly unanswered by someone in the crowd.
And you know what? The night showed me how much I don’t know.
I didn’t play, of course, but if I had, I would have been money in some of the categories (like geography, entertainment and military history). But I was all but clueless in others (like science), and I guess that’s why you want all kinds of people if you’re forming a winning trivia night team; one person’s strength is another’s weakness, and vice versa.
Anyway, my assessment of the situation is that human beings are amazing storehouses of knowledge (or can be). Yes, some of it is very beneficial, some is barely worthwhile and some is simply unsuitable for anything other than, well, a trivia contest.
But whatever the level of usefulness, it’s still fascinating how much knowledge a brain can house. And that’s good thing, and there are many Bible verses that back that up by describing the merits of knowledge, like Proverbs 18:15, “The heart of the discerning acquires knowledge, for the ears of the wise seek it out.”
Hey, I think that has the makings of a good trivia question.
Doug Davison is a writer, photographer and newsroom assistant for the Houston Herald.
Email: ddavison@houstonherald.com.
