Fun Quiz: Do you know what is/are the ides?

I certainly remember hearing that - I think before Caesar gets stabbed in the back, but can't recall what it means.

The public school system worked, and I remembered 11th grade literature! :-)

edit: Now that I think about it, it was 9th grade. :-)

This message was edited Mar 12, 2007 9:45 AM

Another trick question from Terry: The Ides were the 15th day of March, May, July and October, The 13th day in the other months. Both the Romulan and Julian calender were quite complex.

Romulan! LOL! Roman calendar, Farmerdill. The correct answer is all of the above; the Ides fell on the 15 on some months, 13 on others, was the first day of spring on the Roman calendar (Rome is warm!), and was the day on which Julius Caesar was stabbed, as recounted by Shakespeare.

Oh yes, Nifty, very good point, I forgot entirely.

Actually, the first Roman calender was reputed to have been devised by Romulas ( Romulan) and revised by Julius (Julian). The main reason it is tricky, is that Answer One specifies the 15 th of March. Answer Two, throws in the New Year , Anwer Three, leaves out March and does not cover the other ides, Answer Four would be correct if combined with answer three but is incomplete in itself. Sorry folks I have been around multiple choice testing programs too many years.

Sorry, Farmerdill, I've been around Star Trek for too many years. No disrespect intended! Good information there. :-)

Hey..it made me laugh Nifty

Chuckle....I think I should turn over the garden quizzes to FarmerDill - I think he'd do a smashing job with them!!!!

Well, your choices confused me. I thought it was "all of the above." However, if it's the 15th of May, July and Oct. and the 13th of the other months, then Mar. would be one of the "other months." And I knew Mar. 15 was definitely the ides, so I decided my memory was failing me; and I chose the wrong one.

I KNEW that one!! All the above is the right answer but I really only knew that a couple of answers were correct so I took a leap of faith and landed softly. Those Romans were a wily bunch. You couldn't trust them. If they didn't like you they made you catnip for the lions. And since they ruled the world (as they knew it) who was going to complain? Like our present gov't if they want to change the time, they do. They wanted to change the calendar - they did. Not only beware the Ides of March et al but just "Beware".

Ann

After plodding through all your replies I am now thoroughly confused ,whereas I wasn't before ! Mind you ,I didn't really know before anyway -something to do with Caesar being stabbed ...."et Tu Brutus "
Emelle.

Nifty LOL. at least I knew about Caesar

I didn't know about Caesar, I just guessed to get to the answer. :p

Cool idea Terry, how about a 'special-guest-appearance-question' from FarmerDill some time! :)

Anytime he (or anyone else) wants to dream up a question for us, the door is always open ;o)

Oh my goodness, I mostly get these questions wrong, but got it right this time.
And I just took the one that seem least unlikely for me LOL

I got it right too .. remembered my latin. The word ides comes from Latin, meaning "half division" (of a month).

X

Finally, an all of the above! It had to be right. It was, too, I mean before I knew. It sounded right.

Actually I would flunk all of you. Every answer is either incomplete or contains one inaccurate statement except none of the above. No wonder the kids have so much trouble with the SAT.

I cheated and looked it up!!!!

LOL. I just guessed. Then I saw I was partially right but had voted with the majority.

Farmerdill-give a us a quiz!!

Julius who? Didn't he open a winery, with brother Ernest?

This was a trick question and actually none of the answers were correct.

Jesse

From Merriam-Webster online dictionary... "the 15th day of March, May, July, or October or the 13th day of any other month in the ancient Roman calendar."

Should we assume the meaning has changed since the conception of the word? People today use the word "moot" as an adjective to mean "not subject to debate," which, of course, is contrary to its original definition.

Farmerdill - I didn't actually vote, am I still wrong ;)

I was tricked...lol. I thought the question was, what ARE the ides of March are, not where is the word used or made famous.

The question was " What are/is the "Ides"? March 15 is one example of the twelve possible examples but does not answer the question. The Julian calender year began with the Kalendae of January ( January 1). Kalendae from which is derived our word calender is the first day of the month. Takes out anwer two nicely.
Remember the famous question? How many animals of each type did Moses take aboard the ark?

tsk, tsk, tsk. Farmerdill is reading way too much into the answers. I'm not sure I would want to take a test he created - yikes! (*grin*)

Simply put, I took the definitions I found for describing the ides and divvied them up among several options, so as to make an "all of the above" answer. Because - as carrielamont pointed out - I rarely offer an "all of the above" option (since the goal of the weekly question is to stimulate dialogue, not create some scientifically accurate survey ;o)

None of the answers is completely correct on its own, but all of the answers combined would be (pedantics notwithstanding) correct.

Eheu! a pox on he betides
Who confusing quiz provides
To Julian calendrous ides
Where lore and logic doth collides.

The months in half it subdivides,
And ushers in the fresh spring tides.
But some the fifteenth it decides
While others triskadekaphides.

Reputed day of Caesarcides,
As Shakespeare's Witch she prophesieds.
"Et Tu", to Brutus, he confides,
As dagger into toga slides.

What brought forth these strange asides?
My guess so bad, it wounded prides.
So with encyclopaedic guides
I'd best review all Roman ides.

WOW

Its also my birthday and my wedding anniversary - smart husband, only has to remember one day, gets two points.

So, if it's all of the above, then everyone who didn't say "none of the above" is right, right?

My hats off to Don - and doth repeat.....WOW

A simple WOW will not suffice
For clever wit and rhyme,
Although in gardening season's vice
We may not have the time
To splurge with praise
So well deserved
One who has turned a clever phrase,
As we have all observed.

Methinks perhaps this clever child,
His brilliant wit effulgent,
Must verily publish more his script -
He must be more indulgent
To brighten up our daily lives
And dazzle us with verse
That is, of course, if when he strives
He vouchsafes being terse

re the winery - it was Ernest and Julio Gallo

Well I'm with Farmerdill and I think the answer is none of the above.

Jesse