10 Nov, 2017: Day 84

Question 1:
What "character" did Plato use in his writing to convey his own views? Answer: Socrates.

This is an answer I already knew, it helps to be somewhat familiar with Plato and his student Aristotle. Typing in the search field Plato characters gets a page of his many characters and the most famous of those is of Plato’s teacher. You could brute force your way to the answer, but going down the page you would see his name pop up time again in various work (ie, Republic, Symposium, etc.)

Question 2:
In the teachings of Lao Tzu, what is seen as the creative force in the universe through which all things are connected? Answer: The Tao.

Typing lao tzu unifying force gives you a page about the Tao Te Ching. Tao translates from Chinese to “the Way”. If you type Tao (which is the correct answer) into A Google A Day you will receive an error. Only with westernizing Tao with the article “the” does A Google A Day consider it correct.

Question 3:
What name did the stylist, who employed Brad Goreski until October 2010, choose for her first child? Answer: Skyler.

Look up “Brad Goreski” and you will find his website, which contains his bio. When you look up his biography you will see the name of one of his employers in the fashion world. Using “Rachel Zoe" oldest child you would see the answer.

24 Feb, 2016: Day 71

Question 1:
What traffic circle with a "square" name is located just south of the site where the author lived while writing "The Seven Pillars"? Answer: Smith Square.

Please see Day 19 for the explanation..

Question 2:
What "character" did Plato use in his writing to convey his own views? Answer: Socrates.

Please see Day 37 for the explanation..

Question 3:
What volcano in Greece, with an elevation of 367 m, has been worthy of study as a result of its explosive history and close proximity to human population? Answer: Santorini.

You don't want to be around when this volcano goes up. It knocked out a civilization close to it, disrupted another and took out a dynastic line of a third. To locate the answer type volcano Greece 367m.

21 Jan, 2016: Day 37

Question 1:
What "character" did Plato use in his writing to convey his own views? Answer: Socrates.

Plato was not the first to insert words into Socrates' mouth. But that is something that you can explore on your own, using the following search query as a seed. Begin with Plato writing character. You will see refernces within the search results of Plato using Socrates as a literary sock puppet.

Question 2:
As of 2012, of the 65 living members of the "National Baseball Hall of Fame", twenty of them played what position? Answer: 2nd base.

I will say that I used the hint. When I found (use living "baseball hall of fame" members, go to Search Tools and set the day for 1 Jan, 2012-31 Dec, 2012) a newsletter listing the living Hall of Famers I knew that I would have to brute force looking a number.

Question 3:
The main character in the Broadway production of "Jersey Boys" was the lead singer for a band that celebrated their first commercial release in what year? Answer: 1953.

Did you have a hard time with this question too? It's not you, the answer is wrong. Let's stick to Wikipedia for this query. Look up the play Jersey Boys. The lead character is Frankie Valli, who was the lead in the rock/pop band The Four Seasons. Look up both the singer and the band according.

This is where the question goes off the rails.

Frankie Valli had a career prior to the The Four Seasons' first record single in 1961 (the correct answer). His first commercial release, "My Mother's Eyes" was in 1953. This date Google confused with The Four Seasons' release.

Special thanks to long distance relationship blogger Giby Cruz of My So-Called Life, for working with me through the broken logic of this question.

31 Dec, 2015: Day 21

Question 1:
Which virtue do Socrates and Thrasymachus try to define in Book I of The Republic? Answer: justice.

Socrates's main argument with throughout this section of The Republic is on virtue and shortcomings of justice. This is not as hard as it seems. It just requires a little bit of reading and patients. Plug into the search field Socrates Thrasymachus virtue Republic for the answer. Read carefully through the search results.

Question 2:
What explosion in the upper solar atmosphere releases about as much energy as millions of 100-megaton hydrogen bombs exploding simultaneously? Answer: Solar flares.

Please see Day 12 for the explanation.

Question 3:
What does the name given to the Aldabra giant tortoise, considered one of the longest-living animals on record at the time of his death, mean in English? Answer: One and Only.

Please see Day 11 for the explanation.