Repeating letters

The only word that can be spelled without repeating a letter is “uncopyrightable”.    ANSWER: YES

The longest English word typable using only the top row of letters has 11 letters: rupturewort. Not typewriter as claimed on some trivia web sites [Wikipedia]

Spider silk

Spider silk is as strong as the Kevlar used in bulltproof vests. Is this so?     ANSWER: YES

Kevlar is the registered trademark for a para-aramid synthetic fiber, related to other aramids such as Nomex and Technora. Developed at DuPont in 1965, this high strength material was first commercially used in the early 1970s as a replacement for steel in racing tires. Typically it is spun into ropes or fabric sheets that can be used as such or as an ingredient in composite material components. [Wikipedia]

Submarines

The name of the worlds first muclear-powered submarine is Nautilus.   ANSWER: YES

USS Nautilus (SSN-571) is the world’s first operational nuclear-powered submarine. In 1958, she became the first vessel to complete a submerged transit across the North Pole. The first ship to dive under the polar ice cap, on August 31, 1931, had also been named Nautilus [Wikipedia]

Making money

It costs about 3 cents to make a $1 bill in the United States.    ANSWER: YES

It goes without saying that bacteria are everywhere in the environment and most of these microbes are harmless to humans. Should germs on money worry us? Surprisingly, studies of bacteria on money are scarce. In 1972 a study in the Journal of the American Medical Association studied bacteria from 200 coins and bills and found harmful germs like fecal bacteria and Staphylococcus aureus on 13 percent of coins and 42 percent of notes. The study concluded: “Money is truly dirty.”  [Dirty Money: Germs on Money]

SPOILER ALERT: Hints for the 7 stones

::::SPOILER ALERT::::

There are now notecards doing the rounds in SL with the answer and with the large amount of traffic we are getting looking for the solution we have decided to publish some hints.

Look at the local chat and the way the sounds are laid out — — — / — / — — — does this suggest an word structure?

If the structure is correct what sound stands on it’s own as a word?

The phrase is in a very loose english sounds, but the messenger does follow basic grammer in that the message is capitalised in the right place.

Finally the circle in the middle is more of a hinderance than a help, we figured out the message once we ignored the circle as the sound to rune relationship changes each time you step on the stones.

 

Good luck

The Stones have arrived

So the seven stones have arrived and with it a mad rush to be the first to decode their message and reveal the secret gift. The seven stones stand in a circle around a rotating disc with runes and their approximate english word sounds. To solve the riddle you must click the stones in the correct order. Each stone has a rune next to it and will make a phonetic sound when touched. The sounds are a bit quiet but they are also spelled out in local chat.

The central disc’s outer ring shows the seven runes and thier english letter or associated word. The inner disc has the seven runes with their phonetic sounds next to them.

The guys at Malevay have asked that people don’t spoil the game for everyone else by posting the solution, we will respect that and will only reveal the solution after it’s been published by Malevay.

Edit: We have some hints to help you

When you do solve the puzzle you will be rewarded with a gift.

The Legend Part One

In August of 1930, an anthropologist studying lost civilizations in the forests of Chiapas was making his way, on foot, through the tangling overgrowth of the remote jungle. Using his machete to forge a path rough the density, he found himself suddenly distracted by an odd bird song. It was the most unusual cry, a gentle weeping, small and hushed. The Man changed his path, moving in the direction of the sound until he came to a small bed of waist-high plants. Pushing forward through, feeling the terrain below with his boot, he knelt faced the gentle sound to the bed on an old tree where at it’s root, he uncovered a small borough beneath a canopy of dense foliage. Inside, he discovered a creature unlike any he had seen before. Small, wide-eyed and alone, a single infant lay huddled into the bedding of leaves and twine, no bigger than the palm of his hand.

Its coat markings were unusual; unlike any wild cat he had studied, and bears were foreign to this rigid territory. The long tail gave him reason for pause. A fox? No, the fox was slender and agile, and this creature was robust. He picked up the infant and held it to his chest as it nuzzled the underneath of his chin.

A shadow broke the shards of light shooting through the treetops and a screech rang out, echoing through the forest, unsetting the other avian inhabitants from their nests. A bird of prey was hunting, and surely, this infant was its intended feast.

He placed the creature, now sleeping, into his satchel and continued his daylong journey back to the local village. In his quarters, he referenced his texts, combing them thoroughly in an attempt to identify the creature in his care, yet he found nothing. Finally, he decided to summon one of his local associates who had been studying with him, believing it may be known to the people indigenous to the area.

Flipping back the flap of his satchel, he revealed the tiny baby, which had curled into a ball, hugging its own furry tail. Araceli brought her hands to her mouth and slowly stepped toward it.

“Do you know what this is?” He asked in her native tongue.

She did not look away from the sleeping infant, only whispered: “Compañero de los Dioses.” Companion of The Gods.

She reached her hand toward the creatures and with the back of her fingers gently caressed its silken fur. It looked up at her calmly, blinked as though smiling with it’s radiant blue-green eyes and fell back to sleep. She continued in Spanish; “They are as old as time. Ancestors used to carve their likeness into cavern walls, telling stories of the loyalty and gentility of the creature to the Gods. They embody innocence, purity and good will. It was said that when the Gods sought companionship, mortals were too tainted by the flesh, and so they created a beast that knew not of hatred, envy, or desire for power. To earn the trust of such a creature was a blessing. They were regarded as a gift to Mankind, one from which we could learn many things.”

She turned to him, her expression falling, “They perished with the ancients, during the great wars wherein entire civilizations were lost hundreds of years ago. Philosophers claim the Gods reclaimed their gift. Scientists say they were mere representations of an idealist’s world and never existed at all. To my people they are creatures of legend.”

He furrowed his brow, “Well, if there is one surely there must be more. They cannot appear in a mist of magic.”

She nodded her head. “If you consider the nature of our study, Creatures such as this appear in the records of ancient cultures around the world, from Egypt to Mesopotamia, archaeologists have found markings on tombs and carvings in tablets representing what they believed were simply common Cats. These appear frequently in ancient history in various forms. If indeed there is one, there may be more, more around the world but likely weak in numbers, and some may indeed be extinct altogether or most certainly in danger.” In that instant, the anthropologist decided to divert his study.

The following month, raising the young creature by hand, feeding it goat’s milk and sweet leaves, he returned to his Chicago home where he began tracing the history of similar creatures revealed in artifacts, photographs and writings. Along with his creature, which he affectionately called a Meeroo, he traveled next to Egypt the following year, traversing the merciless temperatures and sandstorms of the wilds until, one evening, upon sunset, he saw a shadow in the hazy distance, a familiar shape ensconced by windswept sand. Setting his Meeroo down at his side, the distant creature appeared to take notice, and released a hushed whelp, in which his Meeroo responded. The creature approached, and he immediately appreciated the unique coat and shape. It looked at him with large, beautiful eyes and regarded him quietly for a moment. It began to clean his Meeroo and nuzzle its fur. They played together in the sand until the moon was high, and then slept in the Anthropologists tent with him on his chest.

The two Meeroo accompanied him to Australia, New Zealand, Peru, Thailand and remote locations untouched by Men for centuries, and the Call of the Meeroo always seemed to fetch the response of another more exotic looking of the species. As the Anthropologists menagerie grew, he retreated to an Island in the South pacific with his family, where he would dedicate his life to their survival.

He maintained contact with only one colleague throughout his years in isolation on the island. Araceli. She reveled in his stories of discovery and the precocious antics of his legendary family.

But, when nearly a year had passed since hearing from him in late 1950, Araceli traveled 2 months by air and sea to his secret island. Making certain to go alone, she walked the wilderness for two days before coming to a great clearing in the middle of the island where yet another island sat before her, hovering in the air. It was as though a piece of the earth had been torn from its roots and was suspended like… magic. She clung to the vines that hung from the dirt and rock far above, and she rested in small alcoves when too tired to carry on. It took the woman a night and day before reaching the top, but she prevailed at sunrise on the second day, falling, exhausted, onto a lush green plateau.

Her gaze moved upward and rested upon a crude stone building, covered in vines and moss. Slowly, she found her footing and moved toward the entrance and inside the building. Shrouded in darkness, she saw the flicker of a small flame at the end of the room, casting shadows on the walls on dancing foliage. Taking stealth steps she approached a small cot where, beneath wool blankets lay her friend. He was pale, unmoving. She reached toward his face and caressed it with the back of her fingers and found him cold. Beside him lay a book, “Legend of the Meeroo.”

A rustling from behind startled her, and she turned quickly to see familiar radiant blue-green eyes gleaming in the light of the flame. It was his Meeroo.

It took a step toward her, and she came to her knees, holding outstretched hand. “Do you remember me?”

The Meeroo approached her, and upon reaching her, stood up on its hind legs and looked at her, tilting its head just slightly. It did remember her.

And from the brightness of the sunlight breaking through the entrance, she saw another appear, and then another.

And soon Dozens of creatures, with varying colors and patterned coats. They stopped several feet away, watching her curiously.

The first Meeroo moved to her side. It curled itself into a ball, and rested its head on her leg.

A baby romped playfully from the gathering Meeroo crowd, joining the first… and soon they all began to approach her, rubbing her arms, making subtle chortles of acceptance.

Araceli stayed with the Meeroo, copying the anthropologists Meeroo Diaries by hand, and sending them to those she trusted. Soon, the Meeroo Preservation Society had been established though her efforts. Although still weak in numbers, kind men and women from around the grid have opened their homes and hearts so that these mythical creatures may once again thrive.

Perhaps, you will too.

Mariner 2

The first spacecraft to visit Venus was the Mariner 2 in 1962.    ANSWER: YES

The Mariner II American space probe to Venus, was the first successful spacecraft in the NASA Mariner program. It was a simplified version of the Block I spacecraft of the Ranger program and an exact copy of Mariner 1. The missions of Mariner 1 and 2 spacecraft are together sometimes known as the Mariner R missions. Mariner 2 passed within 35,000 kilometres (22,000 mi) of Venus on December 14, 1962, becoming the first space probe to conduct a successful planetary encounter. [Wikipedia]

Thanks to Katanya Shannara for sending this in.

Punctuation

There was no punctuation until the 15th century.    ANSWER: YES

 

With the invention of moveable type in Europe began an increase of printed material. “The rise of printing in the 14th and 15th centuries meant that a standard system of punctuation was urgently required.”The introduction of a standard system of punctuation has also been attributed to Aldus Manutius and his grandson. They have been credited with popularizing the practice of ending sentences with the colon or full stop, inventing the semicolon, making occasional use of parentheses and creating the modern comma by lowering the virgule. By 1566, “Aldus Manutius the Younger was able to state that the main object of punctuation was the clarification of syntax. [Wikipedia]

Thanks to Katanya Shannara for sending this in,

 

7 Stones sneak peek

A member of the meeroo team posted a notice this week with a picture of the 7 stones and this message;

Hi guys, Masquerade Ball here.  I’m standing in the middle of the 7 stones and wanted to share with you a sneak peak of what you have to look forward to this weekend.  I’m still trying to figure it out myself ! Maybe you’ll have better luck !

So it looks like the stones are arriving this weekend folks. So what do we know so far? The stones are covered in gems and marked with a rune. They play a note when touched and will manifest something. Catherine has promised something special for the first person to send her a picture of the thing that manifests.

Does this picture help at all? Well it is not very high-resolution, but we did make out the two brightest runes, they look very much like the north and south runes from the Oracle device currently at Roo. So do we have to align the device to the north of our sim?

The magic circle seems to have seven runes within different sized smaller circles, unfortunately they are not that clear in this picture. There also appears to be seven runes or rune sequences in the outer ring of the magic circle. The inner circle is divided into two halves in a yin yang style, with the north separated from the south. Does this hint to what is to come? Are there invaders coming from the north. So far we have the story of wars in the distant past and now the Oracle has returned and is looking to the north. When we combine this with the dryads returning with their message, it does seem that this all points to the fact that something bad is coming.

In the story it was said that the meeroos were created as companions for the gods because mankind were tainted. The Lore goes on to mention that the mankind used the Ancients to help them fight their wars. Did mankind pervert the breeding of the meeroos to create creatures capable of war? Our theory is that there are a race of dark meeroos that were created to fight the forces of good. These dark meeroos and their masters were beaten back to the north in the last great battle, but over the years they have recouped their numbers and are now returning.

As soon as we find out, we will post an update…

The Stones have arrived [Update 18/09/2011]