Podcast Script

Welcome back to the LL Study Guide podcast for Match Day twenty. I’m glad you’re here. We’re going to walk through all six questions from today, talk about the right answers, and, more importantly, what you can learn from them for future matches.

Remember, if you want the full write‑ups, extra examples, and links, you can always check the study notes on our website at llstudyguide dot com. I’ll just call them the study notes or the show notes as we go.

Let’s dive in with Question One.

Question One was: What is the acronymic-portmanteau name for the coating developed by Surrey NanoSystems in 2014 that created what was dubbed the “world’s darkest color”? This substance is composed of vertically aligned nanotube arrays that absorb up to 99.965% of visible light.

The answer is: Vantablack.

So this is one of those science pop‑culture crossover facts that quiz writers love. Vantablack is an ultra‑black material made from a forest of vertically aligned carbon nanotubes. Light goes in, but almost none comes back out, so it looks like a flat black void, even when it’s on a three‑dimensional object.

The name itself is a huge clue. It’s an acronymic portmanteau: V A N T A stands for Vertically Aligned NanoTube Array, and then you tack on “black.” So if you see language about nanotubes lined up vertically, that V A N T A piece should ring a bell.

You’ll see Vantablack show up in stories about space tech and telescopes, because it’s great for cutting down stray light in instruments. It’s also popped up in art and design news, like the Vantablack‑coated BMW concept car and that Olympic pavilion that looked like a black hole. There’s even the whole Anish Kapoor controversy about exclusive rights to use one formulation in art.

In the study notes on our website, we’ve laid out a few patterns worth locking in:

First, ultra‑black materials and carbon nanotubes in general. If you see “nanotube forest,” “world’s darkest material,” or something absorbing more than ninety nine point nine percent of visible light, Vantablack should be high on your list.

Second, space and optics applications. Star trackers, satellite baffles, telescope interiors – those are classic use cases, and they can serve as indirect clues to the same concept.

Third, this is an example of how acronym plus descriptive word naming works: Vantablack, Velcro, laser, radar, even more modern materials brands. Once you’re tuned into that, you’ll pick up on a lot of similar science questions faster.

Alright, from super‑black coatings we jump to streaming video.

Question Two: In this branding timeline, what single name is redacted? [REDACTED] Go (2010-2020) -> [REDACTED] Now (2015-2020) -> [REDACTED] Max (2020-2023) -> Max (2023-2025)-> [REDACTED] Max (2025-present).

The answer is: H B O.

Here the game is all about recognizing a brand that’s been through a bunch of streaming names. H B O Go, H B O Now, H B O Max, then just Max, and finally a switch back to H B O Max.

H B O Go was the one you used if you already had H B O through cable. H B O Now was for cord‑cutters who wanted H B O without a cable bundle. Then in twenty twenty, H B O Max launched as the big streaming service with all the prestige H B O shows, plus movies and extra content. In twenty twenty‑three they tried to broaden the appeal with a rebrand to simply “Max,” and by twenty twenty‑five they’d decided the H B O name was too valuable to leave off and switched back to H B O Max.

So the pattern in the question is really: something Go, something Now, something Max, Max, something Max. That “something” had to be H B O.

In the show notes we highlight a few useful angles for this kind of question:

One, know the big streaming brand histories: H B O, Netflix, Hulu, Disney Plus, and so on. Rebrands and product names are low‑hanging fruit for television and business questions.

Two, tie H B O specifically to its Sunday‑night prestige reputation: shows like The Sopranos, The Wire, Game of Thrones, Succession, The White Lotus, and The Last of Us. If you see that cluster of titles, H B O is never far away.

And three, more broadly, be alert to branding timelines. If a question gives you several related product names in sequence, ask yourself, “What is the stable piece that could plug into all of these?” In this case, the shared word on all those old streaming apps was H B O.

Let’s move from streaming to teen vampires.

Question Three: The 2005 novel Twilight is the first novel in the four-novel vampire romance series written by American author Stephenie Meyer, and gives the series its name. Give the name of any one of the other three books in this series, released one per year beginning in 2006?

The acceptable answers here are: New Moon, Eclipse, or Breaking Dawn.

Those three, along with Twilight, make up the core Twilight Saga. You’ve got Twilight in two thousand five, New Moon in two thousand six, Eclipse in two thousand seven, and Breaking Dawn in two thousand eight.

All three sequels were turned into films, and the last one, Breaking Dawn, was split into two movies. Together, the film series made more than three point three billion dollars worldwide, and gave us the whole “Team Edward versus Team Jacob” thing that you still see referenced.

From a quiz perspective, there are a couple of patterns here that show up again and again. We walk through these in more detail in the study notes.

First, know the “big four” titles in these mega‑franchises, especially when they’re neat little sequences. Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, Breaking Dawn. Similarly, for The Hunger Games you’ve got Catching Fire and Mockingjay. For Divergent you have Insurgent and Allegiant. These titles tend to repeat across literature, film, and TV questions.

Second, notice the theme in the naming: they’re all celestial or time‑of‑day words – moon, eclipse, dawn. If you can remember that the series leans into that sky theme, that can jog your memory when you’re under time pressure.

And third, remember that the franchise keeps getting refreshed. There are companion books like The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner, Life and Death, and Midnight Sun. You’ll still see Twilight pop up in questions about modern fandoms, streaming lineups, or young adult literature trends, so it’s worth having those core titles solidly memorized.

Now, let’s switch gears to the art market.

Question Four: What auction house, founded in London as a book auctioneer in 1744, became the first major international firm of its kind to be American-owned when purchased by shopping mall magnate A. Alfred Taubman in 1983?

The answer is: Sotheby’s.

Sotheby’s started in seventeen forty‑four as a book auctioneer in London, founded by Samuel Baker. Over time it expanded from books into fine art, jewelry, and all kinds of high‑end collectibles. By the twentieth century it was one of the two giant global auction houses, along with Christie’s.

In nineteen eighty‑three, American shopping mall developer A. Alfred Taubman bought Sotheby’s, turning it into the first major international auction house to be American‑owned. Taubman was known for upscale shopping malls, and he brought that sense of polish and marketing to Sotheby’s, modernizing its New York presence and helping it grow.

Quiz‑wise, here’s what you want to take from this, and we spell these out nicely in the show notes:

Number one, always keep the big two auctions straight: Christie’s and Sotheby’s. When you see London, seventeen hundreds, books to fine art, and especially the name Taubman, that’s Sotheby’s. Christie’s was founded a bit later, in seventeen sixty‑six, and is its main rival.

Number two, watch for huge headline sales that become clues later. Sotheby’s sold a version of Edvard Munch’s The Scream in twenty twelve for around one hundred twenty million dollars, at the time a record. It’s also handled splashy single‑owner collections and a lot of celebrity memorabilia. Those news stories generate trivia fodder.

Number three, notice the business‑history angle. The question blended art history with a business figure better known for shopping malls. Whenever you see something like “shopping mall magnate A. Alfred Taubman” connected to an art institution, that’s a classic cross‑category hook that can come back in different ways.

And while we’re on consumer experiences, let’s head into the kitchen.

Question Five: What familiar name for a spice common in Middle Eastern and Jamaican cuisine (which is also known as pimento, myrtle pepper, or Jamaica pepper, and which is not actually a blend) refers to its flavor, resembling cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg combined?

The answer is: allspice.

Allspice is the dried unripe berry of a tree called Pimenta dioica, native to Jamaica and parts of Central America. Despite the name, it’s not a blend; it’s one single spice. English traders in the seventeen hundreds thought its flavor tasted like cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg all rolled into one, and started calling it “allspice.” The name stuck.

You’ll see allspice in a few different culinary traditions. In Jamaican cooking, it’s a key ingredient in jerk seasoning, usually along with thyme, hot chiles, and sometimes scallions and brown sugar. In Middle Eastern food, ground allspice often pairs with cinnamon in meat and rice dishes, giving them a warm, savory depth.

In European and North American cooking, allspice shows up a lot in holiday and “warm spice” recipes: things like gingerbread, pumpkin pie, mince pies, fruitcakes, and sausages.

In the study notes, we point out some memory hooks and adjacent topics:

First, this is a classic “not actually a blend” trap. You might be tempted to think of mixed spice, pumpkin pie spice, garam masala, or Chinese five‑spice when you see cinnamon and nutmeg and clove together. But the clue that it’s not a blend, plus those alternate names like Jamaica pepper and pimento, points right at allspice.

Second, be aware of the “pimento” confusion. In some contexts, pimento means a sweet red pepper, like the little red bits stuffed into green olives. For allspice, pimento or pimenta refers to the berry that looks a bit like peppercorns. That’s a nice example of how the same word can point to very different plants.

And third, if you want to deepen your food‑trivia game, you can link allspice to other single‑plant “blend‑like” flavors, such as Sichuan peppercorns or grains of paradise, which combine multiple sensory effects in one spice. We talk a bit about that pattern in the show notes so you can start building a more robust culinary map in your head.

Alright, we’ve got one more, and this one is for the word‑nerds.

Question Six: “I [BLANK] I Dwelt in Marble Halls” and “I [BLANK] We Spoke Again”. What word, whose ending is unique in the English language (or very nearly so), is redacted from these song titles?

The answer is: dreamt.

Dreamt is just the past tense of dream, but spelled with that odd D R E A M T ending. It’s famous in trivia circles because it’s often cited as the only common English word ending in the letters M T, or at least very nearly the only one. There are less common derivatives like undreamt and daydreamt, but dreamt is the everyday form you’re most likely to see.

The first title in the question, “I Dreamt I Dwelt in Marble Halls,” is an aria from an eighteen forty‑three opera called The Bohemian Girl, by Michael William Balfe. It was very popular in the nineteenth century and into the early twentieth. Enya recorded a version simply called “Marble Halls,” which appeared in the film The Age of Innocence, so you might have heard it there.

The second title, “I Dreamt We Spoke Again,” is a song by Death Cab for Cutie from their album Thank You for Today, released in twenty eighteen. The band is pretty well known in indie rock, so this clue was bridging opera and modern music through that shared, slightly old‑fashioned word form.

In the study notes, we talk about a few nice takeaways:

First, language oddities like this are quiz gold. Dreamt, and that M T ending, is a classic pub‑quiz fact. If you’ve never lodged it firmly in your memory, now’s the time.

Second, pay attention to how older word forms hang around in song and poem titles. You’ll sometimes see “dreamt” instead of “dreamed,” or archaic verb endings, even when modern usage has mostly moved on. Those can act as hooks across literature, opera, jazz, and pop music. For example, there’s a big band track titled “I Dreamt I Dwelt in Harlem,” which riffs directly on “Marble Halls.” Once you know the original, the echo is obvious.

Third, this is a reminder that cross‑category questions are everywhere. Here you needed a bit of language trivia, plus just enough musical awareness to recognize that both blanks had to be the same verb. Even if you didn’t know Death Cab for Cutie or the opera, knowing that dreamt is a weird word with that unique ending might have been enough to connect the dots.

Alright, that’s all six questions from Match Day twenty.

We covered a lot of ground today. From Vantablack and the idea of ultra‑black nanotube forests, to the zig‑zag branding of H B O’s streaming apps. From Twilight’s New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn, to Sotheby’s journey from eighteenth‑century book auctions to record‑breaking art sales. Then into your spice cabinet with allspice, and finally into the little corner of English where dreamt lives almost alone with that M T ending.

If any of these felt shaky, don’t worry. The goal isn’t to memorize everything at once. It’s to start noticing patterns: naming conventions in science and brands, how big franchises title their sequels, how a few global auction houses dominate the art market, how single spices can taste like blends, and how quirky words show up in opera and indie rock.

For deeper dives, examples, and links to articles and reference pages, check out the study notes on our website at llstudyguide dot com. You’ll find each question for this match day laid out with extra context and some suggested adjacent topics to explore.

Thanks for listening, and for making the time to review your match. Come back next time and we’ll walk through the next set of questions together. Until then, good luck in your next match day, and happy studying.