c4countdown

Paul Howe

The winning entry from "Ukraine's Got Talent"

Don't let the title put you off, it's an astonishing work of art and inspired me to learn more about WW2 Ukrainian history.

Paul Howe

Paul was one of the most popular names when I was born but has since plummeted well down the list.

So I'm going to have an old man name like Horace or Wilbur

Paul Howe

I'm quite impressed at the direction this thread's taken without any input from Jason Larsen.

Paul Howe

The fact that the universe's constants are so perfect for so many things to happen is a tad fishy, and a problem that we've never really been able to solve. This argument has never made sense to me. What makes the constants 'perfect'? It's like saying that Jackson Pollock's swishing movements were ...

Paul Howe

The fact that the universe's constants are so perfect for so many things to happen is a tad fishy, and a problem that we've never really been able to solve. But if you introduce god it turns the problem into a different one. It's an equally unsolvable problem, but it could quite possibly be a step ...

Paul Howe

It's quite good fun if you like slapstick barbarity. It's also one of those films with very little context to figure out what's actually going on. I came up with a rather unsatisfying theological explanation after pondering it for a bit, but if you like films where everything is eventually explained...

Paul Howe

Well in Chris

Real nightmare of an opponent for when you're just settling in, but an excellent game to watch, great spot with FORAMINA.

Paul Howe

RONQUILS innit.

Shocking display so far, worse than Bevins

Paul Howe

but my guess is that Ed (and the following 7 contestants) will get blown away. Ed was OK yesterday when he cantered away but, judging by his first 2 games, I expect him to get increasingly red and flustered as the game goes on. I think Ed is decent enough not to get blown away, although I do expect...

Paul Howe

IIRC there were a couple of "decision and discrete" maths modules (at least I think there were when I did A level maths), which were hilariously easy. I once read one of the module textbooks in an afternoon when I was board, it was shit like "Janice needs to shower, have breakfast, b...

Paul Howe

Kai Laddiman wrote:I could try and be modest like Conor, but I'm over the moon - A* in GCSE Maths and 100% in Core 1 (AS Maths module)!

Wahey, congratulations little dude. What the fudge is 'Core' though? It used to Pure, Stats, Mechanics and Decision Maths in my day.

Paul Howe

Conor wrote:I'll make a quick reappearance: 3As in maths, further maths and physics and a capitulatory B in computing; plus a 1,1 in STEP. Enough to sneak into St. John's College, Cambridge.

Congratulations, great effort! (especially the STEP bit)

Paul Howe

This has to be one of the easiest 15-rounders there's ever been, as all the letters games (except round 13) included at least one common, easy-to-spot, maximum. Playing along at home, I got 13 maxes (assuming you include the conundrum which I spotted at the same time as C2), which is a record for m...

Paul Howe

I'm sure Paul Howe went on about keeping the "others" column empty. It seems quite easy or isn't it? http://www.apterous.org/viewgame.php?key=764777249242182449 Possibly, I think I was actually on about getting 12 darrens though. And since you managed 2/6 in this game I'm guessing its not...

Paul Howe

Kirk Bevins wrote:
Argh! Now I know how Paul Howe feels.

Awesome and sexy?

Seriously though, Apterous Rex is a bastard. The lag on my end is such that I often get beaten to the buzzer even when I try to blag it. Very frustrating on the few occasions I've managed to force a crucial.

Paul Howe

Richard, I beg to differ! Liverpool did play some decent football in the early season, but in the opening weeks in particular they were laboured and scraped some results they didn't especially deserve. Even the most blinkered of my Liverpool mates thought the same. This, combined with the stuttering...

Paul Howe

to blend in

Paul Howe

Craig, what are you on about? Liverpool played better football than anyone last season, scored more goals, and the only reason they didn't win the title was because of a period of draws in the winter as well as the fact that Manchester United received a string of nonsense refereeing decisions, nota...

Paul Howe

So basically you've gone for a team that would need two precision meteorite strikes to stand a realistic chance and then included two provisos, one involving another long shot regarding Torres staying fit and then an impossibility to finish. Maybe if the Premier League started including penalty sho...

Paul Howe

Happy birthday Junaid!

Paul Howe

Worst. Poll. Ever. Favourite eps: - The proposition 24 ep where Mayor Quimby tries to deport the illegal immigrants - Monorail - Homer getting a triple bypass from Dr Nick - Hank Scorpio Favourite scenes: - The Indiana Jones parody when Bart steals Homer's change jar. - The short film indoctrinating...

Paul Howe

I can make an object of omelette like colour and consistency without breaking any eggs.

Paul Howe

I is harder, the only word that comes to mind atm is CARAVANSERAI? No, that's not one of the four. I suppose you could also consider yourself unlucky; falling foul of Charlie's somewhat arbitrary judgement in selecting fair conundrums. It was far from arbitrary, I selected exactly the conundrums I ...

Paul Howe

A VFSMB to whoever correctly identifies the single hyper conundrum that ends in X. PORTMANTEAUX? Indeed. Should've posted when I knew you weren't lurking around here Paul. Try the 4 that end in I, which are more challenging I think. Ha, I think it's the first time I've logged in this weekend so you...

Paul Howe

Simon Myers wrote: A VFSMB to whoever correctly identifies the single hyper conundrum that ends in X.

PORTMANTEAUX?

Paul Howe

My solution was to let X denote the expected time to E given the ant is 3 moves away (i.e. X is what we're interested in), Y the expected time given two moves away, and Z the expectation given 1 move away. Now, p(3->2) = 1, p(2->3) = 1/3, p(2->1) = 2/3, p(1->2) = 2/3, p(1->0) = 1/3, where p(a->b) de...

Paul Howe

And Bach. Bach is a genre.

Paul Howe

Romantic period piano.

Paul Howe

What is AnaHack? Anyone got Linkage? Basically it presents you with a subset of words from a word list and you have to get as many as you can within a time limit. The words you missed are then more likely to be presented to you in future rounds. It helps quite a lot, although there are some frustra...

Paul Howe

I think AnaHack, another Charlie Reams creation, is actually a better learning tool than playing lots of apterous, at least in terms of providing rapid fire exposure to high probability words. There are some areas where it could be improved, but those who are really serious about learning should con...

Paul Howe

OK, to the tune of the Robin Hood song,

Andrew Hulme, Andrew Hulme, his name rhymes with loom
Andrew Hulme, Andrew Hulme, makes records go boom
930 wont, be beaten soooooon
Andrew whom? Andrew Hulme, Andrew Hulme!

Consider yourself immortalised in song

Paul Howe

Hooray! Count me in please.

Paul Howe

(you have to know what an expectation is) Or you could just tell us what it means. (The expected time for the ant to get from S to E is just the average time it would take if you ran it loads of times.) ;) As for the puzzle itself, I think you can only manage it in an odd number of goes, so 3, 5, 7...

Paul Howe

Oh cock, posted in the wrong forum. Sorry mods.

Paul Howe

Here's a puzzle I like, it involves relatively simple maths (you have to know what an expectation is) although if you've done a specific module at uni you'll find it a lot easier. An ant is standing at a corner of a cube. It picks one of the three edges meeting at the corner with equal probability a...

Paul Howe

Matt Morrison wrote:^ scratch that...

UPTHEARSE

Supoib

Gavin Chipper wrote:
SCOURPAUL

Touche.

That the best you can manage in 30 minutes?

Paul Howe

Of the ones I've created, NOPULSEDR, RUDEFARTS, COMBINERY and FANTHEISM are probably my favourites. Bit lacklustre compared to some of the above though. SOURCHIVE was my scramble (so cheers) but don't think it's been on the show. Incidentally, neither Tom Hargreaves nor Julian Fell solved it but it ...

Paul Howe

FONTANEL maybe?

I've been convinced enough to have it disallowed 3 times on apterous, but I've been wrong about such things before.

Paul Howe

I wonder what it would cost to buy one-tenth of a second of advertising space on Channel 4, and just flash up "apterous.org" for a twentieth of a second during the first and second ad breaks? Although they probably only sell it in ten-second blocks or something, the greedy spoilsports. Ha...

Paul Howe

Excellent debut Andrew, well done

Paul Howe

Frontier Psychiatrist!

Awesome tune and video. I like the one they did with the miner dancing with the sexy ladies too.

Paul Howe

The difference is, picking 1 large doesn't cost you anything, and most of the people at home will be more impressed with a high losing score than some elaborate 6 small method. I know this is something of a moot point because most of the contestants don't analyse the game closely enough to tell the...

Paul Howe

I really don't get the idea that once someone is beaten they should just bend over and concentrate on helping their opponent to an even higher score. Perhaps they should also refrain from offering winning words if they happen to find one, and not bother trying on the conundrum? Regardless of motivat...

Paul Howe

It's perfectly possible for someone who's never even heard of Apterous to play Countdown every day of the week, if they want serious practice. Twice, if they watch the repeat. They'll get hoplites, tangelo, and even gentoo (if they're old enough) with all the apteroids. And a lot of those players w...

Paul Howe

Paul Howe wrote:The ace has to be for something cool though, I have two theories, one is perfecting a duel, and the other I'm not going to share just yet

Unsurprisingly, I was wrong

Paul Howe

Happy birthday, Apterous!

Isn't it more appropriate to celebrate the day it went live to the world though? This is more like celebrating the conception, which is just really really sick.

Paul Howe

I think c4c can be a fairly brutal place for newbies, but the cool ones and Matt Morrison seem to brush it off just fine. Apart from the hard core who know each other well everyone is judged only by what they post, and some do tend to snap judgements Soap actors and sportsmen are all the same inasmu...

Paul Howe

Jimmy Gough wrote:Just finished [fashionista - function word]. Happy to do more.

Nice one, thanks

Paul Howe

Yeah, I finished 1811-1900 [technical college - turn]. I'll do as much as you like tomorrow so just allocate me a section and I'll get cracking. I really don't mind doing it. Haven't heard from Paul for a while so you might as well nab the leftovers of his block; he got up to FASHIONISTA so you can...

Paul Howe

I heard that he wanted his remains to be made into plastic bags so he could still pose a danger to young children.

Paul Howe

PALATISE

Paul Howe

The 4 and the Jack are both whole game things too.

I got a perfect junior and no ace, and no 7 for a junior 7 either. The ace has to be for something cool though, I have two theories, one is perfecting a duel, and the other I'm not going to share just yet

Paul Howe

Instead of imposing restrictions on the letters you can swap, it might help to make the letters distribution more severe as there are too many rounds (IMO) with a boatload of 9s.

It's good fun though, and you get to see a boatload of interesting words.

Word of the day: boatload

Paul Howe

I heartily approve

Paul Howe

Congratulations Kirk, a truly magnificent champion :mrgreen: And well done Jimmy and the other finalists for putting up a good fight. Usually its easy for me to pick people to support (and boo), but I was really conflicted this time as you came across as a great group of people who played the game i...

Paul Howe

Get in Hamish, a bit erratic but undeniably brilliant, going to be a serious test of my c4c loyalties if Jimmy gets through to play him. Think Cate will be disapointed though, definitely capable of much better.

Paul Howe

It's a bit of a rubbish one compared to some of the others, but there can't be too many people who have won and lost in both the champion's and the challenger's chair, but I have. I've done that, and so will a decent number of series finalists (especially non-octochamp finalists). Your method could...

Paul Howe

Some further investigation reveals SHROOMER is missing from my SOED. Of course, I received my copy before Countdown moved to ODE2r and I don't know if a new edition has since been published, so take that with a pinch of salt.

Paul Howe

The OED (Oxford English Dictionary) is 20 volumes and contains pretty much every word their lexicographers think is valid. The Shorter Oxford is 2 volumes and is a smaller subset, and the ODE(2r) used for Countdown is just a single volume and necessarily has less words again (though I don't think t...

Paul Howe

Yowzers

Search found 969 matches