Thursday, February 14, 2008
Ken Jennings Tuesday Trivia - February 12
THIS WEEK'S QUIZ
1. What estate sits just four miles away from Thrushcross Grange? This sounds like something from a 19th century British novel. Northanger Abbey perhaps?
2. Who was named the First Viscount of Alamein in 1946? Patton or Montgomery. I'm going with Patton.
3. What's the only hard part of an octopus's body? its beak
4. Who invented the famous paper bucket still used by KFC today, despite being more closely associated with a different fast food chain? Dave Thomas
5. What nation, whose borders closely hug its namesake river, is the smallest on the African continent? I accidentally saw an answer posted on a bulletin board - Gambia. never heard of the Gambian River.
6. What rock star, appropriately, plays himself in Jerry Seinfeld's Bee Movie? Sting
7. What unusual distinction is shared by these songs? "The Battle of New Orleans" by Johnny Horton, "Can It Be All So Simple" by Wu-Tang, "Fade Away and Radiate" by Blondie, "Hotel California" by the Eagles, "Let There Be Rock" by AC/DC, "Love Potion No. 9" by the Clovers, "Mustang Sally" by Wilson Pickett, and "Night Moves" by Bob Seger. They do all have years in their lyrics. Is there a pattern in the years? Battle of New Orleans - 1814. Mustang Sally - 1965. Fade Away and Radiate - 1955. Night Moves - 1962. Hotel California - 1969. Love Potion No 9 - 1956. Let There Be Rock - 1955. Can It Be All So Simple - 1993.
LAST WEEK'S ANSWERS
1. Roger Federer has now matched what player's open era record of five Wimbledon singles titles in a row? Bjorn Borg won Wimbledon every year from 1976 to 1980. correct
2. The title of what 2007 film originally described a reason to sail "to Byzantium" in a famous W. B. Yeats poem? "Sailing to Byzantium" begins, "That is no country for old men."
3. What kind of seed gives tahini its distinctive flavor? Tahini, used to flavor hummus and other Middle Eastern foods, is a paste of crushed sesame seeds. correct
4. As titles go, it's not quite as catchy as "Living History" or "The Audacity of Hope," but which U.S. presidential hopeful is the author of "Evaluation of Renal Biopsy in Pregnancy Toxemia"? Ron Paul is, as far as I can remember, the only gynecologist ever to run for president. Ron Paul is a doctor. Who knew?
5. What element, used in atomic clocks, has the largest atoms yet measured by science? Cesium is one of the most reactive elements on the periodic table due to its large atomic radius.
6. Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures are spin-offs of what venerable TV science-fiction series? No Doctor Who, no Torchwood. correct
7. What unusual distinction is shared by these U.S. states, and no others? Alaska, Colorado, Hawaii, Montana, Utah, and Wyoming? (As a hint, Bill had Massachusetts in his original list, but I now believe that it doesn't *quite* qualify.) These are the U.S. states that have no part of their border formed by a river. Massachusetts would qualify, but it looks to me like there's a tiny jog just south of Springfield that follows the Connecticut River for less than half a mile.
1. What estate sits just four miles away from Thrushcross Grange? This sounds like something from a 19th century British novel. Northanger Abbey perhaps?
2. Who was named the First Viscount of Alamein in 1946? Patton or Montgomery. I'm going with Patton.
3. What's the only hard part of an octopus's body? its beak
4. Who invented the famous paper bucket still used by KFC today, despite being more closely associated with a different fast food chain? Dave Thomas
5. What nation, whose borders closely hug its namesake river, is the smallest on the African continent? I accidentally saw an answer posted on a bulletin board - Gambia. never heard of the Gambian River.
6. What rock star, appropriately, plays himself in Jerry Seinfeld's Bee Movie? Sting
7. What unusual distinction is shared by these songs? "The Battle of New Orleans" by Johnny Horton, "Can It Be All So Simple" by Wu-Tang, "Fade Away and Radiate" by Blondie, "Hotel California" by the Eagles, "Let There Be Rock" by AC/DC, "Love Potion No. 9" by the Clovers, "Mustang Sally" by Wilson Pickett, and "Night Moves" by Bob Seger. They do all have years in their lyrics. Is there a pattern in the years? Battle of New Orleans - 1814. Mustang Sally - 1965. Fade Away and Radiate - 1955. Night Moves - 1962. Hotel California - 1969. Love Potion No 9 - 1956. Let There Be Rock - 1955. Can It Be All So Simple - 1993.
LAST WEEK'S ANSWERS
1. Roger Federer has now matched what player's open era record of five Wimbledon singles titles in a row? Bjorn Borg won Wimbledon every year from 1976 to 1980. correct
2. The title of what 2007 film originally described a reason to sail "to Byzantium" in a famous W. B. Yeats poem? "Sailing to Byzantium" begins, "That is no country for old men."
3. What kind of seed gives tahini its distinctive flavor? Tahini, used to flavor hummus and other Middle Eastern foods, is a paste of crushed sesame seeds. correct
4. As titles go, it's not quite as catchy as "Living History" or "The Audacity of Hope," but which U.S. presidential hopeful is the author of "Evaluation of Renal Biopsy in Pregnancy Toxemia"? Ron Paul is, as far as I can remember, the only gynecologist ever to run for president. Ron Paul is a doctor. Who knew?
5. What element, used in atomic clocks, has the largest atoms yet measured by science? Cesium is one of the most reactive elements on the periodic table due to its large atomic radius.
6. Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures are spin-offs of what venerable TV science-fiction series? No Doctor Who, no Torchwood. correct
7. What unusual distinction is shared by these U.S. states, and no others? Alaska, Colorado, Hawaii, Montana, Utah, and Wyoming? (As a hint, Bill had Massachusetts in his original list, but I now believe that it doesn't *quite* qualify.) These are the U.S. states that have no part of their border formed by a river. Massachusetts would qualify, but it looks to me like there's a tiny jog just south of Springfield that follows the Connecticut River for less than half a mile.
