Contact Trivia Questions

Answer: Elmer

One of the computers or detection systems at the Very Large Array is also called 'Elmer' -- Ellie literally kisses the computer monitor and says, 'Thank you, Elmer!' when the signal is first detected. It's entirely possible that the test dummy is named after this computer or system that was instrumental in detecting the signal.

Answer: Polo

Kent Clark somewhat compensates for his blindness with superb hearing and an uncanny sense of smell. He recognizes Kitz solely by detecting his cologne, and muses, 'I never would have pegged him as a Polo man.'

Answer: A drawing she made as a child

Early in the film, we see a drawing that young Ellie has made of Pensacola, Florida, a place she had presumably never been, but had contacted that night with her ham radio. The curve of the shoreline and the angles of the hanging palm trees from that picture are perfectly replicated in the alien landscape.

Answer: a poet

When Ellie sees a stupendous 'celestial event,' she finds herself utterly unable to describe what she is seeing. 'No words,' she says. 'They should have sent a poet.'

Answer: They didn't

The alien, who appears to Ellie in the form of her late father, states that the Vegans did not build the transit system themselves; they simply found it, and have been utilizing it judiciously.

Answer: 18 hours

It's revealed at the end that, despite her story having been discredited by Kitz and a congressional panel, Ellie's PRD (personal recording device) did indeed record 18 hours of static.