Archive for March, 2009
Question Asked: Who Does The Voice of the Geico Gecko?
In researching this question, it appears that the gecko’s voice has been done by not one, but three different men over the course of its life.
The original voice, in the commercial where the gecko pleads with people to stop calling him in error, was done by actor Kelsey Grammer.
Subsequent commercials were recorded by British voice over actor Richard Steven Horvitz.
The most recent voice for the gecko is done by Jake Wood.
Question Asked: What Are The Seven Wonders of the World?
There are two sets of “seven wonders”. The “Ancient” set, and the “Modern” set.
The SevenWonders of the Ancient World are:
- The Great Pyramid of Giza
- The Colossus of Rhodes
- The Lighthouse of Alexandria (aka The Pharos Lighthouse)
- The Hanging Gardens of Babylon
- Statue of Zeus at Olympia
- The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus
- Temple of Artemis (Diana) at Ephesus
The Seven Wonders of the Modern World are:
- The Great Wall of China
- Petra in Jordan
- Brazil’s statue of Christ the Redeemer
- Peru’s Machu Picchu
- Mexico’s Chichen Itza pyramid
- The Colosseum in Rome
- India’s Taj Mahal
For more information, check out the Wikipedia page.
Question Asked: What’s A Good Site To Find Open Source Software?
Depending on what type of software you want, the answer will vary.
If you want open source web software to use on your website; I’d recommend HotScripts (www.hotscripts.com)
If you want open source PC/Mac software to use on your computer; I’d recommend Download.com (www.download.com)
Both of these sites contain mostly free, open source software, but also contain some paid (premium) options that you can select from.
Question Asked: How Long Has Alex Trebek Been Hosting Jeopardy!?
The original Jeopardy! aired from March 1964 to January 1975, and had a few reimaginings since then. The most successful Jeopardy version has been with Alex Trebek.
After the original went off the air in March of 1979, the network brought it back on September 10, 1984, starring Alex Trebek, who’s also been producing the show since that time.
Trebek has been hosting for just about 25 years now. As of November, 2008, Trebek has hosted 5500 episodes of the show.
I can’t find any data online about when their season starts and ends, or how many episodes they do per season. Therefore, I can’t get the exact number of shows that he’s hosted until today. But assuming 5 shows per week, and no reruns since November, that puts the total at roughly 5599 including tonight’s episode. That’s pretty impressive. 5600 episodes hosted. Someone should give the guy an award.
This version of the show holds the record for the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Game/Audience Participation Show, with 11.
Question Asked: What Is Macro Photography?
“Macro” in photography translates roughly to “close up.”
A macro lens is capable of getting much closer, and zooming in to much greater detail than a standard lens. Macro lenses can zoom in on insects, flowers, etc and get detail that you couldn’t get with a standard lens.
The downside, is that these macro lense are quite a bit more expensive than standard lense. For example a 60mm Macro lens is roughly $450, and a 100mm Macro lense is close to $875.
A standard 60mm lense would cost you less than $100, generally.
Here’s a few examples of Macro photos I’ve taken with my Canon Rebel XTi and 60mm Macro lense. They’re of a Wiimote, and Rock Band guitar.
Wiimote - Macro
Wiimote - Macro
Rock Band Controller - Macro
As you can see, these images are uber up close, closer than I could get with a standard lense. While these appear that I was literally right on top of the items I was photographing, I was actually about 18 inches away from them. That’s the power of a Macro lense. It feels like you’re taking a picture through a pair of binoculars, and it brings the item you’re photographing up much closer than it really is.