Trivia

Los Angeles (County) ?

Correct, kristina. Over to you.

Thank you, galvo. Here is my question:

You stand on it.
You consume it.
You are guided by it.
You work with it.
You travel with it.
You float on it.
You can’t live without it.

What is it ?

Sorry, natnnat,

it is a very interesting answer,
but not the right one.

Sorry, rsudock,

water is not the right answer.

Sorry galvo, it is not air.

Here are some further clues:

it floats,
it sinks,
it can sparkle,
it can be bouncy,
you can't live without it.

Further clues:

It is “more holy than a crown”,
it is strong with a fist
it is steady with a horse
and, determined with a will.

What is it?

Sorry, YGuy, it is not faith.

Further clues:

It is constructive,
it is destructive,
it is beautiful,
it is ugly.

What is it?

Sorry, rsudock and Stoday,
it is not love or ego.

Here are my further clues:

It brings harmony to the ear,
(and a piano-concerto would not sound the same without it),
it can be many colours,
it can be pliable or rigid,
brittle or flexible,
and once-upon-a-time the person privy to its secrets
was always the king’s most honoured guest.
And, no one can live without it.

What is it?

Here is another clue:

You can get tired carrying it,
but as everyone on IHD knows only too well,
you do get very tired without it.
I am sure tyefly would agree with this statement....

OK kristina, I give up!

Isambard Kingdom Brunel (1806-1859) and Alexandre Gustave Eiffel (1832-1923) made good use of it...

Well done, Stoday, it is iron. Sorry if this was a little bit cryptic at times, but I really think iron is such an underestimated wonderful element and material.
Here is my explanation to all the clues:

You stand on it ... most common element in the planet, and forms much of the Earth’s outer and inner core.
You consume it... plays an important biological role, as in oxygen transportation, so our food contains iron and therefore we can’t live without iron.
You are guided by it...the pointer in a compass which guides us is made of iron because iron responses to the Earth’s magnetic field.
You work with it...because iron tools are common both in industry and domestic use.
You float on it...when you stand on a ship, which is made of iron you are floating.
It floats...as an iron ship.
It sinks...as an iron anchor.
It can sparkle...if a blacksmith leaves a piece of mild steel in the forge too long it reaches such a heat that it begins to spark.
It can be bouncy...as in iron-springs.
It is “more holy than a crown”...the “Iron Crown of Lombardy” is in the Cathedral of Monza & it is one of the most ancient royal insignia of Europe because,
though it looks like a crown of gold, is has a very small band of iron inside which is said to have been made from the nails used at the Crucifixion.
It was the crown of Charlemagne (~742 – 814) & it was also tried on by Napoleon.
It is strong with a fist...as in “ruled with an iron fist”.
It is steady with a horse...as in “the iron horse” being the old steam-train.
And, determined with a will...as in he or she “had an iron will”.
It is constructive...using iron one is able to build structures like the Empire State Building etc.
It is destructive...as in armaments for war.
It is beautiful...as in beautiful decorative ironwork like gates, railings and balconies.
It is ugly... as in bombs.
It brings harmony to the ear, (and a piano-concerto would not sound the same without it)...piano strings are made of steel
(which of course is predominantly iron and not totally pure).
It can be many colours...if you heat a bar of steel it changes colour through red-yellow to white, and if you polish steel and then heat it,
you can see other colours like blue etc.
It can be pliable or rigid...pure iron is extremely pliable, and the very best grade of “wrought iron” is also very pliable...
but when it is steel or even cast iron it is very rigid.
Brittle or flexible... if you harden steel it becomes brittle like glass, and also cast iron is brittle....
but by reducing the carbon-content of steel to its lowest level, flexibility is greatly increased, which is necessary for fine decorative iron work.
And once-upon-a-time the person privy to its secrets was always the king's most honoured guest...
in ancient times iron became powerful because it was used for weapons and tools.
The king needed weapons and he needed the best of everything else which necessitated all the trades to use iron tools and instruments,
therefore the blacksmith, who knew all the mysteries of how to turn iron into the varying products, was the most important person under the king
and he used to sit at the king's table.
Isambard Kingdom Brunel (1806-1859) designed the great Iron ship, the first of its kind, propeller-driven called “SS Great Britain”.
Alexandre Gustave Eiffel (1832-1923) designed the famous Eiffel-tower in Paris, which is made from iron.
And, no one can live without it...so, like it or not, we can’t live without it, iron is as important as air and water.

Over to you, Stoday.

That was a really good trivia question Kristina. When I thought of the answer I knew I'd got it right, so a good cryptic question, i.e. the hidden answers to the oxymoronic clues. I got most of the hidden meanings except for the colours, where I thought of the colours of ferric and ferrous salts.

I shall have to think very hard to formulate a trivium even half as good as Kristina's. I'll post something shortly...

Thank you Stoday, a good additional point about the colours (ferric and ferrous salts).
Other colours are black, the scale that forms, and silver when polished.
It is interesting just how many colours one could list connected with iron.

Over to you, Stoday.

In 1844 Edgar Allen Poe published "The Balloon Hoax", a collection of the articles he'd published in a newspaper. I have attached an excerpt from the story. It contains an error that exposes the story as unquestionably a hoax. What is the error?

It was now that Mr Ainsworth made an extraordinary but, to my fancy, a by no means unreasonable or chimerical proposition, in which he was instantly seconded by Mr Holland -- viz.: that we should take advantage of the strong gale which bore us on, and in place of beating back to Paris, make an attempt to reach the coast of North America. After slight reflection I gave a willing assent to this bold proposition, which (strange to say) met with objection from the two seamen only. As the stronger party, however, we overruled their fears, and kept resolutely upon our course. We steered due west; but as the trailing of the buoys materially impeded our progress, and we had the balloon abundantly at command, either for ascent or descent, we first threw out fifty pounds of ballast, and then wound up (by means of the windlass) so much of the rope as brought it quite clear of the sea. We perceived the effect of this manoeuvre immediately, in a vastly increased rate of progress; and, as the gale freshened, we flew with a velocity nearly inconceivable; the guide-rope flying out behind the car, like a streamer from a vessel. It is needless to say that a very short time sufficed us to lose sight of the coast. We passed over innumerable vessels of all kinds, a few of which were endeavouring to beat up, but the most of them lying to. We occasioned the greatest excitement on board all -- an excitement greatly relished by ourselves, and especially by our two men, who, now under the influence of a dram of Geneva, seemed resolved to give all scruple, or fear, to the wind. Many of the vessels fired signal guns; and in all we were saluted with loud cheers (which we heard with surprising distinctness) and the waving of caps and handkerchiefs.

Is the error that you cannot steer a balloon?

It merely is carried on the wind and can only be made to go either up or down?