The Beast of Eden

Through a convoluted and deceitful recruiting process I'm actually not allowed to discuss (I signed an NDA and everything), two of my coworkers and I wound up on Cash Cab. I kinda felt bad for our host/driver; apparently most people would recognize the ridiculous disco lights inside the cab, but none of the three of us has cable and we were more confused than anything. We had a pretty fabulous first round, though, only missing one question and accumulating $650 by the time we completed the drive from Cabbagetown to Ossington. 

If only things hadn't fallen apart during the finale. Our team captain (or "hero" in the parlance of the show), bolstered by our awesome performance thus far, was seduced by the prospect of a double-or-nothing bonus round, and we were powerless to stop him. The host/driver pulled out a video screen and showed us an image not unlike the one beside this post. "This facility in Cornwall, England houses many international plants and endangered animals, as well as several artificial waterfalls. What is it called?" I could tell you that it's made of geodesic domes, or even that the architect who first used such a thing was R. Buckminster Fuller, but after getting questions on everything from progeria and Erlenmeyer flasks to balsamic vinegar and Lego, nobody in that cab recognized the Eden Project. Easy come, easy go; we left the cab no richer than when we'd hopped aboard. 

It wasn't all a loss; apparently the director was so impressed with our display of nerdy camaraderie that she broke a personal rule and came out of the tech truck to talk to us; when she found out we were en route to a coworker's birthday bar night, she pulled $30 out of her purse and insisted that we have a few beers on her. TV people aren't so bad after all, apparently.