cat issues of, 78–79
chamber music as an unseemly soft spot of, 347
cross-referencing in, 7, 340–41
dedication of, 341–42
dispassionate approach of, 322, 323, 324
diversity of everything in, 120–22
electronic applications of, 80, 81
Eleventh Edition of, 5, 80–82, 332
“erythrocyte” found in, too late for Millionaire, 356
even-handedness of, 143, 300
excitement about diacritics at, 341
facts, not that many, missing from, 320
Fifteenth Edition of, 79
First Edition and founders of (Macfarquhar, Smellie, and Bell), 78–79, 128
flexibility a lesson of, 327
glories of, 4–5
gravitas added to room by, 249
great books coverage in, 328–29
Greek history favored by, 59
handy-phrase translations in, 229
hard-to-forget book titles in, 172
indexing department of, 339–40
instant wisdom in, 70
on itself, 77–82
legal knowledge in, 16
main sections of, 63
marginal utility theory in, 124
material aspects of, 5–6
medical afflictions found in, 59–61
as noble pursuit, 341
nothing evidently left out of, 191
other readers of, 269–71
phonetic guides not found in, 169
physicality of, 164
purchase and arrival of, 5
racism in, 82
randiness of, 9, 11, 38, 169
randomness of, 9, 71
reading of, see Operation Britannica
repetition in, 52
romance in, 32, 44–45, 166
scatology in, 194
self-help guidance in, 75–77
stereotypes broken by, 83
superior putz’s insult of, 332–33
ten best ways to get into, 88–89
Thirteenth Edition of, 81
unauthorized tweaking of, 128
uneven alphabetical coverage in, 79, 219
unorthodox uses of, 163–64
unusual grounds for entry into, 25
vintage and classic editions of, 79–80
visit to HQ of, 336–42
weird and crude facts in, 236
worldview of, 81–82
“encyclopedia”:
derivation of, 77
ligature sometimes seen in, 78, 339
encyclopedias, earliest, longest, strangest, etc., 77–78
“Encyclopedia Twit-annica,” 128
Encyclopédie (Diderot et al.), 77–78
Engels, Friedrich, ideological dualism of, 82–83
Enlightenment, Eleventh Edition as culmination of, 81–82
entertainment:
bearbaiting as, 23
musicals about trains as, 187
nonstop, 8–9
Entertainment Weekly, 336
article on box office prices in, 312
catching colds at, 60
Cats given send-off at, 186
confession of crush at, 165
Oscars covered in, 215
Senator Kennedy not a longtime subscriber to, 167
trend seeking at, 54
eponymy:
avoidance of, 195–96
Chauvin’s contribution to, 222, 223
engineering achievements and, 132
legends of, 25
misspellings and, 46–47
“sandwich” or “Morris,” if you prefer, 310
erythrocyte, defined on Millionaire, 354–56
Esquire:
AJ’s job at, 2
article ideas at, 172–73
article on uncommon fetishes in, 352
baseball talk sidestepped at, 157
Christmas party at, 42–44
Cosmo vs., 318
fashion consciousness at, 63–64
“The Fire Next Time” and, 24
humor ventured at, 134
lichen saluted in, 294–96
new perspective gained at, 118–19
screwups at, 47–48
speech making at, 181–82
sports conversations at, 316
ethics:
“is” vs. “ought” in, 155
Tolstoyan, 328–29
utilitarian vs. deontology in, 227–28
ethnic groups:
baldness compared in, 22
Ostrogoth-American, 128
etymological underground, 25
eunuchs, operatic, 93
evasion strategies:
create a distraction, 43
I’ll-get-back-to-you trick, 43–44
evolution, of typewriter, 335
extinction, of passenger pigeons, 251
facts:
battle of, 192–93
fudging of, 141–42
movie-interrupting, 240–41
swimming vs. drowning in, 319–20
Trebek’s favorites, 102
as trophies of the hunt, 134
weird and crude, 236
world packed with, 210
failures:
in astronomy, 48–49
of cosmos, 49–50
in crossword puzzles, 135–39
in Hitler assassination attempt, 358
in Millionaire, 353–56
at Waterloo, 242
fame:
names forgotten by, 47
screwups recorded by, 48–49
see also celebrities; greats
families:
buttercup, 70
eminence in, 53–54
hippy, 92–93
Family Feud, crossword puzzle–themed version of, 138–39
Farrow, Dave, memory course of, 197–200, 216
fashion, brief history of, 63–64
fertility, 205–6, 216
collectibles and, 169–70
of efficiency guru, 144
experimenting with rituals of, 93–94
of rabbits, 183
fetishes:
breast, 130
for cross-eyed women, 55–56, 92, 130, 148, 192, 244
gum, 58–59
for organization, 121–22
in speed reading, 111–13
Fibonacci series, Boggle scored with, 182–83
1582, ten days skipped in, 74
flagellation, fertility promoted by, 94
flirty fishing, gospel and herpes spread by, 92–93
folklore, elves in, 74
food:
in buffalo merchandise wars, 224
catered, 71–72
in eating contest, 297
ecstasy and, 71
foreign, Carry Nation’s assault on, 223
greasy Italian finger, 235
Italian wedding, 237
ordering of, in Italy, 228–30
restaurant, 68
restrictions on, 75
war over, 311–12
washed by raccoons, 282
football, how to talk about, 158
form, good or bad, in chess, 40
44, number of insanity attacks suffered by Charles VI of France, 38
42, 649, number of red deer killed by ruler of Saxony, 134
Franklin, Benjamin, reasons to name yourself after, 363–64
freezing point, misguided determination of, 92
Freud, Sigmund, Marx preferred to, 97–98
Frost, Robert, Harvard connection of, 18–19, 127, 339
“fucking,” infixing of, 127
gagaku, Korean name for, 104
Galton, Francis, 326
games:
cards, 122
charades, 229, 232
humiliation, 34, 179–80
invented, 231–32
number, 232–33
Simon Says, 107
six-degrees-of-separation, 368
see also crossword puzzles; w
ord games
Garbo, Greta, little-known resume item of, 185
gasoline, best time for purchase of, 196
Genevieve:
Alaskan crab legs sent as gift from, 65
dustup delegated to, 76–77
genius(es):
animosity between, 33–37, 58
capacity for bad behavior among, 147–48
counterintuitive facts about, 181
of Einstein, 202–5
fresh air required for, 17–18
linguistic, 176–79
in Mensa, 56–59, 246
psychological problems ascribed to, 245
temperamental, 31, 38, 52, 296
thoroughly balanced, 296
see also Mensa(ns)
germaphobia, 14, 171
g-forces, protection from, 65
gnomons, 275
God:
fertility, of the Week, 93–94
in Taiping Rebellion, 323
waiting for stars to spell out, 287
golf balls, dimples on, 196
Google(ing):
addiction to, 271
EB vs., 5, 218
for “erythrocyte,” 355, 356
“Jacobs” in, 158
graduate thesis ideas:
clothing colors and world history, 108
“The Scarlet Number,” 129
graham cracker, curious inventor of, 119
Grandma, word police on trail of, 177
Grant’s Tomb, waiting to be asked about, 113
grease, types of, 121
Great EB, The (Kogan), 78–79, 347
greats:
compulsions of, 129–30
cousins favored in marriage of, 358
interesting lives of, 109–10
Greeks, ancient, 59, 304
hair:
in Bible, 8
dreadlocks, 184, 185
Jew-fro, 39–41
mohawks, 184
haircuts:
army crewcut, origin of, 8
five-thousand-year-old, 185
happiness, reaching peak of, 94
Hare and Burke, corpse sales and service by, 36–37
Harington, John, flush toilet fathered by, 265–66
Harper’s Index, 15
Harvard University, notable graduates of, 127
head-bobbing, 261
head flattening, 130
head-snapping technique, 107
health concerns:
cholesterol in, 292
disturbing facts in, 8
germaphobia in, 14, 171
hypochondria and, 14, 59–61, 141, 171, 343
pickles in, 294
Helen of Troy, what she might launch today, 265
hemorrhoids, famous fatal case of, 284
heredity:
in Jacobs family, 144–46
of worldview, 290
herpes, spiritual spread of, 92–93
HiQ societies, 243
history:
cinnamon and chocolate in, 315
constants in, 265
contradictions in, 368, 369
few black-or-white hats in, 300
figures lost to, 29
flexibility an advantage in, 327
Greek, favored by EB, 59
Greeks vs. Romans in, 304
interwovenness of, 222–23, 358
luck’s huge part in, 357–58, 360
pamphleteer’s place in, 248
Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon in, 109–10
terrorism in, 324
Hitler, Adolf, failed assassination attempt on, 358
Hoeflin, Ron:
HiQ societies founded by, 243
as Millionaire lifeline, 331
philosophical pursuits of, 243–46
Hoiberg, Dale, 338–39
Hollywood:
antigerbil gossip in, 115
Aztec idea stolen by, 20
founding of, 133
humility plan for, 330
see also movies
Holmes, Sherlock, organized mind of, 196–97, 271
Homo sapiens, faith in success of, 361
Houdini, Harry:
Conan Doyle’s feud with, 109
fact checking on, 128
name chosen by, 293–94
How to Explain Pictures to a Dead Hare (Beuys), 25
human beings, interaction with, 70, 72–74
humiliation games, 34, 179–80
humor:
“being there” as aid to, 134
about Burbank, 187
see also jokes
Hustler, EB compared with, 169
Huxley, Aldous, EB habit of, 270
hypochondria, denial of, 14, 59–61, 141, 171, 343
hypocrisy, uses of, 82–83
illnesses, breakthrough, 291
Impact of Rule 10b-5 (Jacobs Sr.), 15
impatience, advantages of, 27, 242
income, Mensan unsteadiness of, 148
“index,” indexing of, 340
indexes, wit in, 15
Indonesia, rare cone shell of, 96
infixes, examples of, 127
information:
appetites for, 226–27
counterintuitive, 47
haboob, 126
inaccurate, 92
memory limited for, 196–97
optimism-inspiring, 184
quest for meaning in, 52
risk in sharing of, 50–51
trees vs. forest of, 242
see also knowledge
insults:
EB-worthy, 234–35
finger, 235
underdog group co-opting of, 276–77
intellectual competition, 33–37
intelligence:
crystallized vs. fluid, 326–27
defining of, 19, 244–45, 325–26
Francis Bacon’s pursuit of, 21–22
Hasidic competition and, 18–19
in HiQ societies, 243
wisdom vs., 369
see also IQ
international criminal law, editing article on, 340–41
interviews, for Millionaire, 257
inventors, close-but-no-cigar, 176
IQ:
high, balancing on one foot associated with, 181
in marveling at keys, 211
see also genius(es); intelligence
IQ tests, 326
embedding in, 235–36
war with, 132, 154–55
Italy, Rick and Ilene’s Jewish wedding in, 227, 235, 237–38
Jacob, of Bible fame, 158
Jacobs, A. J.:
in the As, 1
Beavis moments overcome by, 103
brain atrophy of, 10
brain damage feared by, 16, 17–18, 27, 132, 224–25
confrontation avoided by, 123, 170–71
conversation stopping ascribed to, 134
courtship strategy of, 50–51
crossword debacle of, 135–39
cultural prejudices of, 29–30
debating techniques of, 312–14
depression of, 75–77
epistemology bypassed by, 20
ethical relativism eschewed by, 87
evasion strategies of, 43–44
exposure courted by, 13
facial feedback tried by, 76
fashion issues of, 63–64
favorite compulsions of, 129–30
full name of, 38
Gandhi as heralding hope for, 108
hidden allusions missed by, 120
hypochondria denied by, 59–61, 141, 171, 343
hypothetical Britannica entry for, 14
intellectual rise and decline of, 1–2
Jeopardy off-limits to, 193, 253
journalistic start of, 117
as late sleeper, 56
Marxist school days of, 310
memorizing system of, 199–200
Mensa membership of, 56–59
Millionaire trials of, 253–58
&
nbsp; motion efficiencies of, 144
at Ns in Venice, 233
nude posing of, 306–7
as one-time smartest boy in the world, 16–20, 27, 147, 212, 246, 268
overstuffed mind of, 83–85, 89–90, 95–96
parts of speech apparently an issue for, 303
religious inclination of, 286
remembering name of, 198
rhetorical devices favored by, 181–82
sending wine to, 118
as seventy-five trillion cells, for a start, 140
two-thirds of historical event attended by, 156–57
unintended atonality of, 317
uniqueness as goal of, 146
Jacobs, Arnold. J., Sr.:
achievement of, 54
AJ’s Britannica entry for, 364–65
AJ’s feat hailed by, 342
AJ’s interaction with, 54, 73–74, 144–46, 212–13, 329–30, 365
as beach-chair scholar, 226–27
buffalo fabrications of, 223–24
Byzantine practical jokes of, 72–74, 223–24, 342, 365
children’s FAQs known to, 26
ethical relativism as seen by, 86
Genghis fixation of, 113–14
high school education of, 272–73
interaction with, 114
on light speed, 28–29
mid-Bs reached by, 3, 15–16, 145
missing kids of, 297–99
origin of AJ’s rivalry with, 98–99
party behavior of, 72–74
quasi-Asimov achievements of, 14–15
Renaissance Man ideal of, 117
Jacobs, Beryl, 3
in Alaska, 297–99
chemical symbol for, 28
daughter born to, 285
moral sense of, 310–11
Seymour’s bouncy visit to, 98
Jacobs, Ellen Kheel:
AJ’s cheating incident and, 86
AJ’s reading habits deplored by, 61–62
Deadhead message heard by, 119
in mother-son bonding trip, 186–87
multitasking rejected by, 126
pigeons as viewed by, 261
practical mind-set of, 117
telegonic perspective on, 144
Jacobs, Jasper, 329
AJ’s preparation for, 369
gender observed in, 318–19
naming of, 360–61, 364
sonograms of, 318–19, 364
Jacobs, Julie Schoenberg:
AJ quizzed by, 133
AJ restrained by, 12–13, 69–70
AJ’s cranial capacity known by, 180
AJ’s crush revealed to, 165
AJ’s Mensa membership and, 57
birthday expanded by, 203
on Britannica prospect, 4
buying flowers for, 184
canned crying not needed by, 46
celebratory dinner provided by, 368, 369
EB disappointing to, 87–88
fury provoked in, 262–63
Hanukkah present of, 83–84
herb-related aid to, 65–66
impressive sleep attainments of, 308
J-volume comment of, 163
marriage of, 14
organizing fetish of, 121–22
Oscar party of, 162–63
pregnancy of, 281, 282, 285, 299, 306, 307–8, 318–19, 324–25, 332, 334, 364; see also Jacobs, Jasper