Friday, June 19, 2009

Major Body Systems

Isaac Asimov's Super Quiz

Published Friday, June 19, 2009

Subject: MAJOR BODY SYSTEMS
Identify the body system by its function. The first letter is provided. (e.g., Use of the sex organs for childbirth. (R) Answer: Reproductive system.)

FRESHMAN LEVEL

1. Processing food with mouth, stomach and intestines. (D)
Answer________

2. Structural support and protection through bones. (S)
Answer________

3. Circulation of blood with heart arteries and veins. (C)
Answer________

GRADUATE LEVEL

4. The use of the lungs for breathing. (R)
Answer________

5. The use of muscle tissue to move body parts and maintain posture. (M)
Answer________

6. Defending against disease-causing agents. (I)
Answer________

PH.D. LEVEL

7. Collecting and processing information with brain, spinal cord and nerves. (N)
Answer________

8. System of glands that produce secretions to control metabolic activity. (E)
Answer________

9. Eliminating fluid wastes from the body. (U)
Answer________

ANSWERS:
1. Digestive system.
2. Skeletal system.
3. Cardiovascular (circulatory) system.
4. Respiratory system.
5. Muscular system.
6. Immune system.
7. Nervous system.
8. Endocrine system.
9. Urinary system.

The Long and Short of It

Isaac Asimov's Super Quiz

Published Thursday, June 18, 2009

Subject: THE LONG AND SHORT OF IT.
(e.g., Who was the short one in the Abbott and Costello team? Answer: Costello.)

FRESHMAN LEVEL

1. An infield position in baseball.
Answer________

2. The pirate leader in "Treasure Island."
Answer________

3. Beatles line and song title that precedes "that leads to your door."
Answer________

GRADUATE LEVEL

4. Selling securities one doesn't own, hoping to buy them back at a lower price.
Answer________

5. Eugene O'Neill's "long" full-length play.
Answer________

6. This term refers to the Jack Dempsey-Gene Tunney rematch.
Answer________

PH.D. LEVEL

7. Term for a very terse statement typical of Spartan speech.
Answer________

8. What dissolved itself in England in 1660?
Answer________

9. They were previously known as Durham cattle.
Answer________

ANSWERS:
1. Shortstop.
2. Long John Silver.
3. "The Long and Winding Road."
4. Selling short.
5. "Long Day's Journey Into Night."
6. The "long count" match.
7. Laconic.
8. The Long Parliament.
9. Shorthorn cattle.

Lasts

Isaac Asimov's Super Quiz

Published Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Subject: LASTS
Identify the last occurrence. The year is provided. (e.g., 2006: Western Union sent its final ___. Answer: Telegram.)

FRESHMAN LEVEL

1. 1991: He resigned as the last leader of the Soviet Union.
Answer________

2. 2004: Final production of this General Motors division product line.
Answer________

3. 2002: Last empress of India died at age 101.
Answer________

GRADUATE LEVEL

4. 1971: Last year this product was allowed to advertise on American television.
Answer________

5. 2007: The last of the Rat Pack died at age 89.
Answer________

6. 2006: This president died, the last of the Warren Commission members.
Answer________

PH.D. LEVEL

7. 1927: The last of this Ford model was manufactured.
Answer________

8. 1914: Martha, the last of this type of bird, died at Cincinnati Zoo.
Answer________

9. 1923: The last Western country to adopt the Gregorian calendar.
Answer________

ANSWERS:
1. Mikhail Gorbachev.
2. Oldsmobile.
3. Queen Elizabeth (the Queen Mother).
4. Tobacco (cigarettes).
5. Joey Bishop.
6. Gerald Ford.
7. Model T.
8. Passenger pigeon.
9. Greece.

Collective Nouns

Isaac Asimov's Super Quiz

Published Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Subject: COLLECTIVE NOUNS
Provide a specific animal defined by the collective noun. Alternate answers may be possible. (e.g., A pack of ___. Answer: Wolves, hounds, rats, grouse.)

FRESHMAN LEVEL

1. A flock of ___.
Answer________

2. A swarm of ___.
Answer________

3. A team of ___.
Answer________

GRADUATE LEVEL

4. A pod of ___.
Answer________

5. A nest of ___.
Answer________

6. An army of ___.
Answer________

PH.D. LEVEL

7. A sounder of ___.
Answer________

8. A raft of ___.
Answer________

9. A cluster of ___.
Answer________

ANSWERS:
1. Geese, sheep, camels, seagulls (or other bird).
2. Bees, flies, wasps, ants, rats, eels.
3. Horses, oxen, ducks, malamutes, huskies.
4. Whales, seals, dolphins.
5. Hornets, mice, rabbits, vipers, snakes.
6. Ants, frogs, caterpillars.
7. Pigs, swine, boars.
8. Ducks, penguins, auks, coots.
9. Spiders, cats, grasshoppers, bees.

European History

Isaac Asimov's Super Quiz

Published Monday, June 15, 2009

Subject: EUROPEAN HISTORY
(e.g., What empire did Julius Caesar head? Answer: Roman Empire.)

FRESHMAN LEVEL

1. What European culture provided the foundation of Western civilization?
Answer________

2. What city was the capital of the Byzantine Empire?
Answer________

3. What religion became legal under Emperor Constantine?
Answer________

GRADUATE LEVEL

4. These religion-driven military campaigns were mainly against Muslims.
Answer________

5. Which king is numbered as "Charles I" by both France and Germany?
Answer________

6. This pandemic is estimated to have killed 30 percent to 60 percent of Europe's population.
Answer________

PH.D. LEVEL

7. This German monk's ideas greatly influenced the Protestant Reformation.
Answer________

8. Translate "Liberte, egalite, fraternite."
Answer________

9. What revolution promised "peace, bread and land"?
Answer________

ANSWERS:
1. Greek culture.
2. Constantinople.
3. Christianity.
4. Crusades.
5. Charlemagne.
6. Black Death (bubonic plague).
7. Martin Luther.
8. Liberty, equality, fraternity (brotherhood).
9. Russian Revolution.

American Buildings

Isaac Asimov's Super Quiz

Published Saturday, June 13, 2009

Subject: AMERICAN BUILDINGS
(e.g., The official residence of the U.S. president. Answer: The White House.)

FRESHMAN LEVEL

1. Completed in 1931, it was the world's tallest building for 40 years.
Answer________

2. San Antonio's famous "mission."
Answer________

3. It surpassed the World Trade Center to become the tallest U.S. building.
Answer________

4. It serves as the seat of government for the U.S. Congress.
Answer________

5. It is the headquarters of the U.S. Department of Defense.
Answer________

GRADUATE LEVEL

6. This California mansion was under construction for 38 continuous years.
Answer________

7. Though in New York City, the land it occupies is considered "international territory."
Answer________

8. This triangular Manhattan tower was one of the first skyscrapers.
Answer________

9. This museum complex is nicknamed "America's Attic."
Answer________

10. This palatial estate in San Simeon, Calif., was built by a newspaper magnate.
Answer________

PH.D. LEVEL

11. This Frank Lloyd Wright house reputedly inspired Ayn Rand's "The Fountainhead."
Answer________

12. It is the largest privately owned home in the United States.
Answer________

13. Located near Charlottesville, Va., it was the estate of Thomas Jefferson.
Answer________

14. The de facto national library of the United States.
Answer________

15. This art deco skyscraper was the world's tallest building for 11 months.
Answer________

ANSWERS:
1. The Empire State Building.
2. The Alamo.
3. The Sears Tower.
4. U.S. Capitol building.
5. The Pentagon.
6. The Winchester Mystery House.
7. The United Nations Headquarters.
8. Flatiron Building.
9. Smithsonian Institution.
10. Hearst Castle.
11. Fallingwater.
12. Biltmore Estate.
13. Monticello.
14. The Library of Congress (three buildings).
15. The Chrysler Building.

People on U.S. Stamps

Isaac Asimov's Super Quiz

Published Thursday, June 11, 2009

Subject: PEOPLE ON U.S. STAMPS
Identify the person who has been featured on a U.S. stamp. (e.g., Author of "Little Women." Answer: Louisa May Alcott.)

FRESHMAN LEVEL

1. The straight man for Lou Costello.
Answer________

2. Composer of "There's No Business Like Show Business."
Answer________

3. Charlie McCarthy was his sidekick.
Answer________

GRADUATE LEVEL

4. He forever changed the world of magic and escapes.
Answer________

5. The best-known composer of ragtime music.
Answer________

6. He was "The Manassa Mauler."
Answer________

PH.D. LEVEL

7. The first openly Jewish man to become an entertainment star in America.
Answer________

8. He is best known for black-and-white photographs of Yosemite National Park.
Answer________

9. Anthropologist whose "Patterns of Culture" was translated into 14 languages.
Answer________

ANSWERS:
1. Bud Abbott.
2. Irving Berlin.
3. Edgar Bergen.
4. Harry Houdini.
5. Scott Joplin.
6. Jack Dempsey.
7. Al Jolson.
8. Ansel Adams.
9. Ruth Benedict.

Scientific Thought

Isaac Asimov's Super Quiz

Published Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Subject: SCIENTIFIC THOUGHT
(e.g., What is Erno Rubik's best-known invention? Answer: Rubik's Cube.)

FRESHMAN LEVEL

1. Which is better vision: 20/20 or 20/15?
Answer________

2. Which Greek philosopher was noted for his paradoxes?
Answer________

3. What term is derived from the two words "taximeter" and "cabriolet"?
Answer________

GRADUATE LEVEL

4. Ralph Nader's book "Unsafe at Any Speed" hastened the demise of this vehicle.
Answer________

5. Two-word term for the meltdown of a nuclear reactor deep into the earth.
Answer________

6. Informal term for the part of the elbow over which the ulnar nerve passes.
Answer________

PH.D. LEVEL

7. What distance is calculated to be 24,902 miles (40,075 kilometers)?
Answer________

8. What is "Inventure Place," in Akron, Ohio?
Answer________

9. How long does a U.S. patent for a new invention last?
Answer________

ANSWERS:
1. 20/15.
2. Zeno.
3. Taxicab.
4. Chevrolet Corvair.
5. China Syndrome.
6. Funny bone.
7. Distance around Earth at the equator.
8. The National Inventors Hall of Fame.
9. Twenty years.

Explorers

Isaac Asimov's Super Quiz

Published Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Subject: EXPLORERS
Identify the area explored: Polar region, Africa or Latin America. (e.g., Fridtjof Nansen. Answer: Polar region.)

FRESHMAN LEVEL

1. David Livingstone
Answer________

2. Roald Amundsen
Answer________

3. Hernan Cortes
Answer________

GRADUATE LEVEL

4. Vasco de Balboa
Answer________

5. Ernest Shackleton
Answer________

6. Robert F. Scott
Answer________

PH.D. LEVEL

7. Mungo Park
Answer________

8. Pedro Cabral
Answer________

9. John H. Speke
Answer________

ANSWERS:
1. Africa.
2. Polar region.
3. Latin America.
4. Latin America.
5. Polar region.
6. Polar region.
7. Africa.
8. Latin America.
9. Africa.

Anagrammed Countries

Isaac Asimov's Super Quiz

Published Monday, June 8, 2009

Subject: ANAGRAMMED CAPITALS
Unscramble the letters to identify a national capital city, then name the country. (e.g., Saunas. Answer: Nassau, Bahamas.)

FRESHMAN LEVEL

1. Pairs
Answer________

2. More
Answer________

3. Solo
Answer________

GRADUATE LEVEL

4. Mail
Answer________

5. Units
Answer________

6. Hasten
Answer________

PH.D. LEVEL

7. Animal
Answer________

8. Curse
Answer________

9. Minks
Answer________

ANSWERS:
1. Paris, France.
2. Rome, Italy.
3. Oslo, Norway.
4. Lima, Peru.
5. Tunis, Tunisia.
6. Athens, Greece.
7. Manila, Philippines.
8. Sucre, Bolivia.
9. Minsk, Belarus.

Chinese Inventions

Isaac Asimov's Super Quiz

Published Saturday, June 6, 2009

Subject: CHINESE INVENTIONS
Identify the invention. (e.g., A device for winding and unwinding fishing line. Answer: Fishing reel.)

FRESHMAN LEVEL

1. The use of this white substance to season and preserve food.
Answer________

2. Fabric made from fine threads produced by certain insect larvae.
Answer________

3. A device found in most churches and used to summon people.
Answer________

4. Substance used in fireworks and bombs.
Answer________

5. It replaced clay tablets and other mediums of writing.
Answer________

GRADUATE LEVEL

6. Its invention promoted the production of books.
Answer________

7. The medicinal practice of inserting needles for therapeutic purposes.
Answer________

8. Its invention greatly aided navigation.
Answer________

9. Grain first cultivated and now the main diet of many Chinese.
Answer________

10. Type of fraction where the denominator is a power of 10.
Answer________

PH.D. LEVEL

11. Hand-held stringed weapon used for both warfare and hunting.
Answer________

12. Its use promoted commercial transactions and trade.
Answer________

13. Type of furnace used for the smelting of iron.
Answer________

14. Watertight compartments built into ships.
Answer________

15. Use of this resinous substance as a varnish.
Answer________

ANSWERS:
1. Salt.
2. Silk.
3. Bell.
4. Gunpowder.
5. Paper.
6. Printing.
7. Acupuncture.
8. Compass.
9. Rice (millet).
10. Decimal fraction.
11. Crossbow.
12. Paper currency (bank notes).
13. Blast furnace.
14. Bulkhead (partitions).
15. Lacquer.