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Fifty | Fifty two countries are members of the Commonwealth. Our countries span Africa, Asia, the Americas, Europe and the Pacific and are diverse – they are amongst the world’s largest, smallest, richest and poorest countries. Thirty-one of our members are classified as small states – countries with a population size of 1.5 million people or less and larger member states that share similar characteristics with them. | How many countries are there in the British Commonwealth? |
Dáil Éireann | Ireland is a parliamentary democracy. The National Parliament (Oireachtas) consists of the President and two Houses: Dáil Éireann (House of Representatives) and Seanad Éireann (the Senate) whose functions and powers derive from the Constitution of Ireland enacted by the People on 1st July, 1937. The Houses of the Oireachtas are situated at Leinster House, Dublin. | What is the Irish house of representatives called? |
John Paul I | London (ap/dpa) Pope John Paul I, who was head of the Catholic Church for only 33 days in 1978, was murdered, claims the British author David Yallop in his book "In God's Name", which was published in 1984. After 3 years of investigation he has come to this conclusion, having found out that members of the forbidden Italian secret lodge "P2" allowed the pope to be poisoned. | Who was Pope for only 33 days in 1978? |
Freddie Mercury | Freddie Mercury (born Farrokh Bulsara; 5 September 1946 – 24 November 1991) was a British singer, songwriter and record producer, known as the lead vocalist and co-principal songwriter of the rock band Queen. He also became known for his flamboyant stage persona and four-octave vocal range. Mercury wrote and composed numerous hits for Queen ("Bohemian Rhapsody," "Killer Queen," "Somebody to Love," "Don't Stop Me Now," "Crazy Little Thing Called Love," and "We Are the Champions."); occasionally served as a producer and guest musician (piano or vocals) for other artists; and concurrently led a solo career while performing with Queen. | Who was lead singer with the group Queen? |
Lewis Carroll | The author of “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” and “Through the Looking Glass” is Lewis Carroll. This is an pseudonym; his real name was Charles Lutwidge Dodgson. (His last name is pronounced with a silent ‘g’.) | Which author had the real name Charles Dodgson? |
Thomas More | Sir Thomas More, also called Saint Thomas More (born February 7, 1478, London , England —died July 6, 1535, London; canonized May 19, 1935; feast day June 22), English humanist and statesman, chancellor of England (1529–32), who was beheaded for refusing to accept King Henry VIII as head of the Church of England . He is recognized as a saint by the Roman Catholic Church . | Who was the Lord Chancellor beheaded for refusing to recognize Henry VIII as head of the church? |
Charles de Gaulle | Free France and its Free French Forces (French: France Libre and Forces françaises libres) were the government-in-exile led by Charles de Gaulle during the Second World War and its military forces that continued to fight against the Axis powers as one of the Allies after the fall of France. It was set up in London in June 1940 and also organised and supported the Resistance in occupied France. | Who led the Free French forces during World War II? |
Little Big Horn | On June 25, 1876, George Armstrong Custer and the 265 men under his command lost their lives in the Battle of Little Big Horn, often referred to as Custer's Last Stand. | Which battle of 1876 was Custer's last stand? |
Danny Kaye | Danny Kaye was an American actor and comedian. Born in Brooklyn as red-haired David Daniel Kaminski, Kaye became one of the world's best-known comedians. In 1941 he appeared in the Broadway show, Lady in the Dark and performed the famous number Tchaikovsky, in which he sung the names of a whole string of Russian composers at breakneck speed seemingly without taking a breath. He starred in many films such as Hans Christian Andersen (1942), The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (1947), The Inspector General (1949), White Christmas (1954), Knock on Wood (1954), and The Court Jester (1956). He also hosted a variety hour on CBS, The Danny Kaye Show, from 1963 to 1967. | Which actor, comedian and singer was born David Daniel Kaminski? |
Dutch | Margaretha Geertruida "Margreet" MacLeod (née Zelle; 7 August 187615 October 1917), better known by the stage name Mata Hari, was a Dutch exotic dancer and courtesan who was convicted of being a spy and executed by firing squad in France under charges of espionage for Germany during World War I. | What nationality was the spy Mata Hari? |
Harry Gordon Selfridge | "The customer is always right" is a motto or slogan which exhorts service staff to give a high priority to customer satisfaction. It was popularised by pioneering and successful retailers such as Harry Gordon Selfridge, John Wanamaker and Marshall Field. They advocated that customer complaints should be treated seriously so that they should not feel cheated or deceived. This attitude was novel and influential when misrepresentation was rife and caveat emptor (let the buyer beware) was a common legal maxim. Variations include "le client n'a jamais tort" (the customer is never wrong) which was the slogan of hotelier César Ritz who said, "If a diner complains about a dish or the wine, immediately remove it and replace it, no questions asked". A variation frequently used in Germany is "der Kunde ist König" (the customer is king). | "Who said: ""The customer is always right""?" |
Elvis Presley | Elvis Presley is, quite simply, the King of Rock & Roll. | Who was the king of rock and roll? |
Dr. Watson | John H. Watson, known as Dr. Watson, is a fictional character in the Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Watson is Sherlock Holmes' friend, assistant and sometime flatmate, and the first person narrator of all but four of these stories. He is described as the typical Victorian-era gentleman, unlike the more eccentric Holmes. He is astute, although he can never match his friend's deductive skills. | Who was Sherlock Holmes' assistant? |
The Maori | The indigenous people of New Zealand are the Maori, belonging to the Polynesian group. Between 800 and 1,350 AD, a wave of Polynesians coming from Tonga and Samoa on their canoes settled in New Zealand. The Maori tradition says that a Polynesian chief of the island of Hawaiki, called Ngahua, knowing the abundance of jade in New Zealand, a shiny tough green stone used for making carvings, collars and adornments, headed an expedition made of 8 canoes. Each canoe was 30 m (100 ft) long, harboring over 100 persons. This contingent settled in Te-Ika-a Maui, the Maori name of the northern island of New Zealand, where they made a population nucleus to which new colonizers were soon added. Maori simply means "human" in the Maori language. | What are the indigenous people of new Zealand called? |
Grace Kelly | Grace Kelly, the Fifties film star who became a princess, was born in 1929. After making her name in films such as High Noon, Rear Window and To Catch a Thief, she married Prince Rainier III of Monaco on April 19 1956 and retired from acting. She died in a car crash in 1982 after suffering a stroke while driving. | Who was the film star who married Prince Rainier III of Monaco? |
Philistines | Goliath was the champion of the Philistines, who had encamped between Shochoh and Azekah against Saul and the men of Israel arrayed for battle in the valley of Elah. He is describedas being six cubits and a span in height, having upon his head a helmet of brass, and wearing a coat of mail weighing five thousand shekels of brass, with greaves of brass upon his legs and a target or gorget of brass between his shoulders. The staff of his spear is said to have been like a weaver's beam, the spear's head weighing six hundred shekels of iron. | Of which tribe was Goliath the champion? |
Stonewall | Jackson rose to prominence and earned his most famous nickname at the First Battle of Bull Run (First Manassas) on July 21, 1861. As the Confederate lines began to crumble under heavy Union assault, Jackson's brigade provided crucial reinforcements on Henry House Hill, demonstrating the discipline he instilled in his men. Brig. Gen. Barnard Elliott Bee, Jr. exhorted his own troops to re-form by shouting, "There is Jackson standing like a stone wall. Let us determine to die here, and we will conquer. Rally behind the Virginians!" There is some controversy over Bee's statement and intent, which could not be clarified because he was killed almost immediately after speaking and none of his subordinate officers wrote reports of the battle. Major Burnett Rhett, chief of staff to General Joseph E. Johnston, claimed that Bee was angry at Jackson's failure to come immediately to the relief of Bee's and Bartow's brigades while they were under heavy pressure. Those who subscribe to this opinion believe that Bee's statement was meant to be pejorative: "Look at Jackson standing there like a stone wall!" Regardless of the controversy and the delay in relieving Bee, Jackson's brigade, which would thenceforth be known as the Stonewall Brigade, stopped the Union assault and suffered more casualties than any other Southern brigade that day; Jackson has since then been generally known as Stonewall Jackson. During the battle, Jackson displayed a gesture common to him and held his left arm skyward with the palm facing forward – interpreted by his soldiers variously as an eccentricity or an entreaty to God for success in combat. His hand was struck by a bullet or a piece of shrapnel and he suffered a small loss of bone in his middle finger. He refused medical advice to have the finger amputated. After the battle, Jackson was promoted to major general (October 7, 1861) and given command of the Valley District, with headquarters in Winchester. | What nickname was given to General Thomas Jackson because of his stern defense at the battle of Bull Run? |
Saint Peter | Like the martyrdom of the Apostles Saint Peter and Saint Paul (see previous post here ), a great number of Christians perished at the hands of Nero during the terrible persecution that lasted from the years 64-68 A.D. This was the first major persecution of the newly founded Church at Rome. The holy men and women are also called the “Protomartyrs of Rome.” The historian Tacitus, in his said that a “great multitude” of Christians were put to death. | Which Christian martyr was first bishop of Rome? |
Photography | Richard Avedon, like the subjects of his boldly scaled photographic portraits, is a figure who may at times appear larger than life. In a career that has spanned more than half a century, he has distinguished himself as an artist of immense energy and originality and has created many of the iconic images of our time. Avedon first made his name in the pages of Harper's Bazaar, where his arresting images set a new standard for fashion photography. His fashion photography was the subject of a major exhibition, Avedon: Photographs, 1947–1977, presented at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1978. An equal achievement has been his reinvention of the genre of photographic portraiture. Unlike the fashion work, most of Avedon's portraits were not initiated by commercial assignments but by personal conviction. Each is a virtuoso reckoning with human complexities and contradictions and a powerful expression of this artist's distinctive vision. | In which of the arts has Richard Avedon distinguished himself? |
Mormons | Completing a treacherous thousand-mile exodus, an ill and exhausted Brigham Young and fellow members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints arrived in Utah’s Great Salt Lake Valley on July 24, 1847. The Mormon pioneers viewed their arrival as the founding of a Mormon homeland, hence Pioneer Day. The Mormons, as they were commonly known, left their settlement in Nauvoo, Illinois , and journeyed West seeking refuge from religious persecution. The final impetus for their trek was the murder of founder and prophet Joseph Smith on June 27, 1844. | Which religious grou0p migrated westward to the Great Salt Lake, Utah, in 1847? |
Samuel Johnson | In his 1755 dictionary Samuel Johnson defined the lexicographer as “a writer of dictionaries; a harmless drudge, that busies himself in tracing the original, and detailing the signification of words.” Unfortunately Johnson was uncharacteristically wrong. A lexicographer, if any good, is hardly a drudge, and if bad, is hardly harmless. | "Which 18th-century dictionary compiler defined himself as a ""harmless drudge""?" |
Mikhail Gorbachev | The President of the Soviet Union (), officially called President of the USSR () or President of the Union of the Soviet Socialist Republics (), was the head of state of the Soviet Union from 15 March 1990 to 25 December 1991. Mikhail Gorbachev was the only person to occupy the office. Gorbachev was also General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union between March 1985 and August 1991. He derived an increasingly greater share of his power from his position as president until he finally resigned as General Secretary after the Soviet coup d'état attempt of 1991. | Who was president of the USSR from 1985-91? |
Spartacus | *Spartacus, Thracian gladiator who led a large slave uprising in Southern Italy in 73–71 BC and defeated several Roman legions in what is known as the Third Servile War | What was the name of the Thracian slave who led an ultimately unsuccessful gladiator revolt against Rome in 73 BC? |
Edward VIII | With these words, delivered with sadness over the radio on Dec. 11, 1936, to his subjects in Britain, Edward VIII, later the Duke of Windsor, became the first monarch in British history to voluntarily abdicate his throne, which he did 11 months after assuming it. | Which English king abdicated and became Duke of Windsor? |
Yuri Gagarin | 1961 - First Man in Space (Yuri Gagarin with the Vostok 1 Rocket) | Who was the first man in space in 1961? |
Dynamite | Timeline Description: Alfred Nobel was the founder of the Nobel Prize. He invented dynamite, and it was his goal later in life to award monumental discoveries. This is a timeline of his life. | What invention made the fortune of Alfred Noel, founder of the Nobel prize? |
Barnum | Tom Thumb first toured America in 1843 at the age of five and was a huge success. In February 1844 Tom Thumb made his debut on the London stage at the Princess’s Theatre. The Illustrated London News called him ‘a little monster’. However Barnum managed to secure Stratton an audience with Queen Victoria and his subsequent appearance at the Egyptian Hall later that year was a huge success with the public flooding to see ‘the wonderful little man’. | Whose circus did General Tom Thumb join at the age of five in 1843? |
Ireland | The Irish revolutionary leader and statesman Eamon De Valera served as prime minister and later president of Ireland (1959-1973). | Of which country was de Valera the prime minister, and later the president? |
Veronica Lake | The Blue Dahlia is a 1946 film noir, directed by George Marshall based on an original screenplay by Raymond Chandler. The film marks the third pairing of stars Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake. It was Chandler's first original screenplay. | "Which actress starred opposite Alan Ladd in the film ""The Blue Dahlia""?" |
Coco Chanel | The “little black dress,” quintessential staple of any woman’s wardrobe, isn’t as timeless as most people think. An LBD is a classic in that it’s neither a trend nor is it ever out of fashion, but its history is a surprisingly short one, dating back only about a century to the early 1900s. While history tends to credit French designer Coco Chanel with popularizing the design, the question of who came up with the little black dress first is a little more complicated than that. | "Which French fashion designer created the ""Little black dress""?" |
Lanolin | Lanolin or wool wax secretes from the glands of sheep. Crude wool is collected and diluted with alkali to obtain the wax. It has been in use since ancient times as a cure for skin diseases. Today it is in great demand in industries connected with fabrics, ink and lubricants. | What is the sticky wax obtained from sheep? |
Teflon | Be advised that Teflon is the trade name for a line of cookware. Other lines of non stick cookware that use the Teflon coating includes Greblon, Silverstone, Supra, and Excaliber. This is not a comprehensive list. Check before you buy. | What is the trade name for the non-stick material used for coating cooking pans? |
Cast Iron | Cast Iron – carbon 2 – 6% and Iron at 94 to 98%. Very strong but brittle. Used to manufacture items such as engine blocks and manhole covers. | What name is given to the brittle kind of iron used for making engine blocks and manhole covers? |
Decibel | Loudness of sound is measured in decibels (dB) . This is actually a measure of intensity, which relates to how much energy the pressure wave has. Decibels are a relative measurement. They relate the intensity of a pressure wave to a normal or standard pressure. | Which scientific unit gives a measure of loudness? |
Reptile | Iguanas are some of the largest lizards found in the Americas, with their whiplike tail making up about half of that length. Like other reptiles, iguanas are cold-blooded, egg-laying animals with an excellent ability to adapt to their environment. | What kind of animal is an iguana? |
Magma | The molten rock below the Earth’s surface is known as magma. Magma is a combination of a molten and semi-molten rock mixture that is extremely hot. Magma is between 1,292 and 2,372 degrees Fahrenheit, or 700 and 1,300 degrees Celsius. | What is the name given to the molten rock beneath the surface of the Earth? |
Collagen | Tendons are strong inelastic cords or bands of connective tissue that connect muscle to bone. They are composed of collagen and contain blood vessels. The inelastic tendon will not stretch when the muscle contracts. Therefore the full pull is transmitted to the bone and the full range of motion is accomplished. | What is the strong inelastic material found in a human tendon? |
Enamel | Tooth enamel is the outermost layer of the portion of the tooth not surrounded by bone. It is the hardest material in the body, harder than even bone. It is made up of calcium hydroxyapatite crystals surrounding a mixture of various proteins. It is susceptible to degradation (demeralization) by acid. This acid comes from two major sources. The first is acid-producing bacteria that can inhabit the surface of the teeth (which causes tooth decay). The second is from external influences such as stomach acid (from frequent vomiting or esophageal reflux/heartburn) or acidic liquids like soda. If the enamel becomes too thin, the tooth can be weaker or sensitive to cold. | What material forms the hard outermost layer of a human tooth? |
Electron | Electrons - Subatomic particle that has almost no weight and carries a negative charge; orbits in a shell about the nucleus of an atom. | What name is given to an atomic particle carrying a negative charge? |
Nucleus | DNA is one of the nucleic acids, information-containing molecules in the cell (ribonucleic acid, or RNA, is the other nucleic acid). DNA is found in the nucleus of every human cell. (See the sidebar at the bottom of the page for more about RNA and different types of cells). The information in DNA: | DNA is found in which part of the cell? |
Aspirin | Acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) is better known to most people by its common name, aspirin . A combination of sodium salicylate and acetyl chloride, this medication is the first non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug ( NSAID ) to be developed, and it’s been in use for over a century. It was developed by Charles Frederic Gerhardt in the mid 19th century, but it didn’t gain popularity until the early 20th century, when its ability to reduce pain and fever were widely noted and the company Bayer® began to manufacture and distribute it in many countries. | By which name is the drug acetylsalicylic acid better known? |
Six | An insect has six legs. Insects' legs are jointed, and the movement of these joints is controlled by a combination of partial musculature and passive biomechanical non-muscular structures. Some insects also have a clawlike structure on the last segments of their legs. | How many legs has an insect? |
Arachnids | One class of arthropods is the arachnids which include spiders, scorpions, and mites. Spiders have two main body parts and eight legs. | Which animals are arthropods and have eight legs? |
Halogen | Fluorine belongs to group number 17, which is the halogen family of elements that also includes astatine, iodine, bromine and chlorine. The element fluorine is a highly reactive gas at room temperature that is not found freely in nature. Fluorine has a melting point of 363.32 degrees F, a boiling point of 306.62 degrees F and a density of 0.001696 grams per cubic centimeter. | Chlorine, fluorine and bromine belong to which family of elements? |
Penicillin | Sir Alexander Fleming a Scottish Biologist is attributed as having discovered the first antibiotic and it was penicillin. It was derived from the mold Penicillium chrysogenum which could be found on food and even waste. His discovery happened in 1928. | Which was the first antibiotic to be discovered? |
100 degrees Celsius | The boiling point of water is 100 degrees Celsius or 212 degrees Fahrenheit at 1 atmosphere of pressure (sea level). Jody Dole, Getty Images | What is the boiling point of water? |
Vitamin C | Ascorbic acid is a vitamin. It works by supplementing vitamin C, which is used in many functions in the body. | Ascorbic acid is which vitamin? |
Quantum mechanics | Heisenberg's name will always be associated with his theory of quantum mechanics, published in 1925, when he was only 23 years old. For this theory and the applications of it which resulted especially in the discovery of allotropic forms of hydrogen, Heisenberg was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics for 1932. | Heisenberg is most associated with which branch of physics? |
Superconductivity | Heike Kamerlingh Onnes (; 21 September 1853 – 21 February 1926) was a Dutch physicist and Nobel laureate. He exploited the Hampson-Linde cycle to investigate how materials behave when cooled to nearly absolute zero and later to liquefy helium for the first time. His production of extreme cryogenic temperatures led to his discovery of superconductivity in 1911: for certain materials, electrical resistance abruptly vanishes at very low temperatures. | What did Heike Kamerlingh-Onnes discover? |
Native elements | Pure samples of isolated elements are uncommon in nature. While the 98 naturally occurring elements have all been identified in mineral samples from the Earth's crust, only a small minority of them can be found as recognizable, relatively pure minerals. Among the more common of such "native elements" are copper, silver , gold, and sulfur. Carbon is also commonly found in the form of coal, graphite, and diamonds . The noble gases (e.g., neon) and noble metals (e.g., mercury) can also be found in their pure, non-bonded forms in nature. Still, most of these elements are found in mixtures. | What kind of elements are found in a pure state in nature? |
Angles | Angles are classified as acute, obtuse, right, straight, or reflex, according to their angle measure. Part 1 [3 points]: If measure of angle CBD is ninety degrees , what is the classification of angle ABC ? Part 2 [4 points]: Explain how you determined the classification. | "What are classified by their measurement in degrees as ""right"", ""reflex"", ""obtuse"", or ""acute""?" |
Hypotenuse | The name hypotenuse is given to the longest edge in a right-angled triangle. (It is the edge opposite to the right angle and is c in this case.) | What is the name given to the longest side of a right-angled triangle? |
Anders Celsius | Q: Which Swedish scientist had a temperature scale named after him? A: Anders Celsius. | Which Swedish scientist had a temperature scale named after him? |
7 | White light, or nearly white light from the Sun , contains a continuous distribution of wavelengths. The light from the Sun is essentially that of a blackbody radiator at 5780 K . The wavelengths (spectral colors) of white light can be separated by a dispersive medium like a prism . Even more effective separation can be achieved with a diffraction grating . | How many colors are there in the spectrum when white light is separated? |
Archimedes Principle | Q: The discovery of which law provoked the surprised cry 'Eureka!'? A: Archimedes Principle. | The discovery of which law provoked the surprised cry 'Eureka!'? |
Plasma | Although it is significantly different from a gaseous state of matter in characteristics, plasma is often described as a hot ionized gas. Generally, the number of negatively charged electrons that are free flowing in plasma will be equal the number of positively charged ions within. Because the particles in plasma are free flowing, they are strongly influenced by outside forces, such as magnetism and electrical fields. | What is described as an ionized gas with approximately equal numbers of positive and negative charges? |
Amplifier | amplifier - electronic equipment that increases strength of signals passing through it | Which electronic device magnifies the strength of a signal? |
Calorie | a unit of heat, equal to 4.1868 joules (International Table calorie): formerly defined as the quantity of heat required to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water by 1°C under standard conditions. It has now largely been replaced by the joule for scientific purposes | What was the name of the unit of heat now replaced by the joule? |
Einstein | Unified field theory, in particle physics , an attempt to describe all fundamental forces and the relationships between elementary particles in terms of a single theoretical framework. In physics, forces can be described by fields that mediate interactions between separate objects. In the mid-19th century James Clerk Maxwell formulated the first field theory in his theory of electromagnetism . Then, in the early part of the 20th century, Albert Einstein developed general relativity , a field theory of gravitation . Later, Einstein and others attempted to construct a unified field theory in which electromagnetism and gravity would emerge as different aspects of a single fundamental field. They failed, and to this day gravity remains beyond attempts at a unified field theory. | Whose 'unified field theory' tried to explain the four fundamental forces in terms of a single, unified force? |
Lens | Diverging light rays are made parallel by a convex lens. But when the parallel light rays pass through a concave lens, they diverge (spread out) again. | What diverges rays of light, if it is concave? |
Frequency | In physics, number of periodic oscillations, vibrations, or waves occurring per unit of time. The SI unit of frequency is the hertz (Hz), one hertz being equivalent to one cycle per second. Frequency is related to wavelength and velocity by the equation: f = v/λ where f is frequency, v is velocity, and λ is wavelength. Frequency is the reciprocal of the periodT: f = 1/T | What can be expressed as the number of cycles of a vibration occurring per unit of time? |
Momentum | In classical mechanics, linear momentum, translational momentum, or simply momentum (pl. momenta; SI unit kg m/s, or equivalently, newton-second) is the product of the mass and velocity of an object. For example, a heavy truck moving rapidly has a large momentum—it takes a large or prolonged force to get the truck up to this speed, and it takes a large or prolonged force to bring it to a stop afterwards. If the truck were lighter, or moving more slowly, then it would have less momentum. | What is the product of the mass of a body and its linear velocity? |
Vector quantity | Velocity is a vector quantity. It has both magnitude as well as direction. When we say that velicity changes, there can be three conditions: | Which quantity has direction as well as magnitude? |
Tesla | The SI unit of magnetic flux density Named after the Croatian-born American electrical engineer Tesla. The magnetic flux density when 1 [Wb] of magnetic flux passes through a surface with an area of 1 [m2] is 1 [T]. 1 [T] = 10-4[G], the CGS unit for magnetic flux density. | What is the SI unit of magnetic flux density, named after a Croatian electrical engineer? |
Very low temperature | In physics, cryogenics is the study of the production and behaviour of materials at very low temperatures. | What is studied in the science of cryogenics? |
Omnivores | Omnivore is the term for animals that eat both plants and animals. Human beings are prime examples of omnivores. Other examples include chickens, raccoons and flies. | What name is given to animals that eat both flesh and plant material? |
Penguins | Penguins: aquatic, flightless birds found in the Southern Hemisphere | Which flightless marine birds of the southern hemisphere live in rookeries? |
Hummingbird | The hummingbird, such as the broad-billed hummingbird, is the only bird who has the ability (and tendency) to fly backwards! These tiny birds can beat their wings 53 times a second and they fly in a unique acrobatic style matched by few other birds. | Which are the only birds able to fly backwards? |
Chloroplast | The organelle that carries out photosynthesis is the chloroplast. It contains chlorophyll, the green substance in plants that allows them to create food from carbon dioxide and water. | Photosynthesis is carried out in which part of the cell? |
Bark | Our skin, the largest organ of our body. It protects us from the elements as well as helping with our body temperature. If one has ever cut down a tree you have noticed the protective layer of the bark. Also an insulator as well as a protector of nutrients that flow up the trunk. Damage the bark significantly and you see a scar for the rest of the tree’s life. Even our brain has a protective outer layer called dura mater, “tough mother.” The protection of many animals, trees, plants and even insects have protective outer layers to escape predators as well as protection from the elements. What about our emotions, our soul, our spirit? What is the protective layer of our emotions? Is it any wonder that paramedics, police officers, and those in active combat become calloused or to the contrary do not, and suffer PTSD, post traumatic stress disorder. It IS our very perception of self, combined with experience and our success, as well as failure that protects our soul our living spirit. When met with repetitious life trauma, emotional devastation repeatedly we may weaken, however this is also the process that develops character. | What is the name of the protective outer layer of trees? |
Water | For plants to perform photosynthesis they require light energy from the sun, water and carbon dioxide. Water is absorbed from the soil into the cells of root hairs. The water passes from the root system to the xylem vessels in the stem until it reaches the leaves. Carbon dioxide is absorbed from the atmosphere through pores in the leaves called stomata. The leaves also contain chloroplasts which hold chlorophyll. The sun’s energy is captured by the chlorophyll. | What liquid do plants need for photosynthesis? |
Tadpole | The aquatic larva of a frog or toad, having gills, a long, laterally compressed tail, and in early stages, no limbs. During metamorphosis of a tadpole into an adult, legs and lungs develop, and the tail gradually disappears. Also called polliwog. | What is the larva of a toad called? |
Fungi | any member of a kingdom of organisms (Fungi) that lack chlorophyll, leaves, true stems, and roots, reproduce by spores, and live as saprotrophs or parasites. The group includes moulds, mildews, rusts, yeasts, and mushrooms | What grow as parasites and saprotrophs, contain no chlorophyll, and reproduce by means of spores? |
To absorb oxygen | These fantastic little organs allow the fish to absorb oxygen from the water and use it for energy. Functionally, gills are not that dissimilar to the lungs in humans and other mammals. The main difference is how they are able to absorb much smaller concentrations of available oxygen, while allowing the fish to maintain an appropriate level of Sodium Chloride (salt) in their bloodstream. | Why do fish have gills? |
Lodge | A beavers home is called a lodge. | What is a beaver's home called? |
Phloem | Plants use a special tissue called phloem to transports sap — a sticky solution that contains sugars, water, minerals, amino acids, and plant hormones. Sap moves through phloem via translocation, the transport of dissolved materials in a plant. Unlike the xylem, which can only carry water upward, phloem carries sap upward and downward, from sugar sources to sugar sinks: | Which tissue carries sugary sap around the plant? |
Mesophyll | Mesophyll cells occur in the middle of the leaf. They have thinner cell walls containing mostly cellulose instead of tougher substance such as lignin. Two types exist: cylindrical palisade cells that lie in layers immediately beneath the epidermis and irregularly shaped cells that lie below the palisade cells in a more loosely packed tissue called spongy parenchyma. All these cells have organelles called chloroplasts where the cell makes food for the plant. | Which cells form the middle layer of plant leaves? |
Kookaburra | Laughing kookaburras are the largest member of the kingfisher family. Members of the kingfisher family are found all over the world and are some of the only bird species known to be able to hover. | Which antipodean bird is the largest member of the kingfisher family? |
Plankton | In the marine environment food chains begin with microscopic algae (called phytoplankton). The algae are eaten by tiny sea animals (called zooplankton), which are in turn eaten by small fish, crustaceans, and a variety of other sea animals. They, in turn are eaten by larger carnivores. | Which microscopic organisms form the basis of marine and freshwater food chains? |
Prehensile | Okapi's tongue is prehensile, which means that is used for stripping the leaves and buds from stems of various plants. Besides leaves, okapi eats fruits, grasses, ferns and twigs. | What kind of a tongue does the okapi have? |
Krill | Baleen whales eat baitfish, herring, pollock, plankton and krill. There are 12 species of baleen whales. The group gets its name from the plates of baleen fiber in their mouths that act as teeth. | What do baleen whales eat? |
Stomata | Plants 'breathe' too, but they do it through tiny openings in leaves called stomata (singular: stoma). Stomata open and close to allow the intake of carbon dioxide and the release of oxygen. It's very important that they do this, because this is the very oxygen that we ourselves need to breathe! | What is the name of the structures which allow leaves to breathe? |
Arachnid | Scorpions are members of the arthropod class Arachnida which also includes spiders , daddy-long-legs , and mites . Like other arachnids, scorpions have 2 body segments (cephalothorax and abdomen), no antennae, 4 pairs of legs, and fang-like mouthparts called "chelicerae." Although the pincers of a scorpion resemble legs, they are "pedipalps," which are actually mouthparts. All arachnids have pedipalps, but on most arachnids the pedipalps resemble antennae. Scorpions are equipped with a venomous stinger located on the end of the abdomen. Most scorpions have 6 to 12 tiny eyes. | What kind of a creature is a scorpion? |
Oxalic acid | Rhubarb leaves contain poisonous substances, including oxalic acid, which is a nephrotoxic and corrosive acid that is present in many plants. Humans have been poisoned after ingesting the leaves, a particular problem during World War I when the leaves were mistakenly recommended as a food source in Britain. The toxic rhubarb leaves have been used in flavoring extracts, after the oxalic acid is removed by treatment with precipitated chalk. | Which acid is contained in rhubarb leaves, making them poisonous to eat? |
Sporophyte | The ___ generation of a fern is the dominant phase of its life history. a) sporophyte; b) adult; c) embryo; d) gametophyte ANS is a | Which is the dominant generation in the ferns? |
Nacre | Mother of pearl, also called nacre , is an iridescent layer of material that forms the shell lining of many mollusks . Pearl oysters and abalone are both sources of this substance, which is widely used as an inlay in jewelry, furniture, and musical instruments. Mother of pearl comes in several natural colors as seen here in cream and white. | What is the name of the lustrous substance that forms pearl and mother-of-pearl? |
Perfume | The oil is named after the Italian city of Bergamot where it was originally cultivated. The evergreen bergamot orange tree (Citrus bergamia) is a hybrid of the Seville orange and Citrus limetta, the so-called “pear lemon”. The oil is famous for its use in the perfume industry. Bergamot oil has a refreshing citrus aroma that is somewhat spicy, light yet rich. It is also the distinctive ingredient in Earl Grey tea. Bergamot FCF essential oil used in aromatherapy is produced by cold expression of the fruit’s rind after it has been allowed to ripen and dry. | What is the main use of the tree Citrus bergamia? |
Bach | Over sixty years ago Doctor Edward Bach, a medical physician, gave up his Harley Street practice to focus on creating a new system of healing through wild flowers. His remedies work by by addressing an individual’s emotional state rather than simply looking at their symptoms. He discovered that one’s body is a mirror of one’s mental state. So if one is frightened, worried or depressed, progress through the disease toward recovery is slow, but if one is hopeful, happy and determined, recovery will happen more quickly. | Which physician developed a type of remedy involving wild flowers? |
One | Some animals domesticated for one purpose no longer serve that purpose. Some dogs were domesticated to assist people in hunting, for instance. There are hundreds of domestic dog species today. Many of them are still excellent hunters, but most are pets. | How many species of domestic dog are found today? |
Crustacea | Barnacle is a small but a hardy saltwater animal belonging to Arthropoda phylum along with being put in the class Crustacea and the order Cirripedia. Barnacles are usually found attached to ships, rocks, wharves, marine animals and to other hard surfaces. Acorn barnacle, Brown Buckshot barnacle, Goose barnacle and Thatched barnacle are some common types of barnacle. Barnacles are closely related to lobsters and crabs as they too have a hard outer cover. | What kind of creature is a barnacle? |
Pancreas | Blood sugar regulation is crucial because high and low blood glucose can cause health problems. The pancreas is an elongated organ wide on one end and slender on the other end and measures about 25 centimeters in length. It has dual functions: it releases digestive enzymes, which plays a role in digestion, and it secretes hormones. | Which organ is responsible for regulating the blood sugar level? |
Coccyx | Human tails are extremely rare, with perhaps only a few hundred cases documented worldwide over the past half-century. Medical researchers who have had the lucky opportunity to study a human tail have divided them into two general categories: "true tails," which extend from the coccyx (tailbone) where one might expect a so-called "vestigial tail," and "pseudotails" which are often found in other locations on the lower back, and seem to be obvious aberrations since they are often associated with anomalies. | What is the scientific name for the human ''tail'? |
Kidney | Which organ removes excess water, salts, uric acids, and chemicals from the blood? the kidneys the lungs the sweat glands the pharynx | Which organ removes excess water from the blood? |
Vitamin C | A lack of vitamin C in the diet is the primary cause of scurvy. This can occur in people on very restricted diets , who are under extreme physiological stress (for example, during an infection or after an injury), and in chronic alcoholics. Infants can develop scurvy if they are weaned from breast milk and switched to cow's milk without an additional supplement of vitamin C. Babies of mothers who took extremely high doses of vitamin C during pregnancy can develop infantile scurvy. In children, the deficiency can cause painful swelling of the legs along with fever , diarrhea, and vomiting. In adults, early signs of scurvy include feeling weak, tired, and achy. The appearance of tiny red blood-blisters to larger purplish blotches on the skin of the legs is a common symptom. Wound healing may be delayed and scars that had healed may start to break down. The gums swell and bleed easily, eventually leading to loosened teeth. Muscle and joint pain may also occur. | A deficiency of which vitamin can cause scurvy? |
Jugular veins | Three pairs of major veins return deoxygenated blood from the tissues of the head and neck to the heart. The left and right vertebral veins descend through the transverse foramina of the cervical vertebrae to drain blood from the spinal cord, cervical vertebrae, and muscles of the neck. In the head, superficial structures on the exterior of the skull are drained by the pair of external jugular veins, which descend through the neck lateral to the vertebral veins. Most importantly, the brain is drained by a group of large cavities in the dura mater layer of the meninges known as dural venous sinuses. Blood collected in these sinuses drains into the largest veins in the head and neck - the left and right internal jugular veins. The internal jugular veins collect blood from the brain as well as the superficial structures of the head and neck before descending through the neck towards the heart. | What are the two main veins in the neck, returning blood from the brain to the heart? |
Retina | I am telling you that it was made by God; for it is your eye. Your eye proves that there is a God! Your eye takes in 80% of all the information that is processed by your brain. The film (the retina) takes up less than a square inch and contains 137 million light sensitive receptor cells. Your tear ducts secrete a potent bacteria killing enzyme and your eyelids act as �windshield wipers� to keep the eye clean and infection free. | Which part of the eye contains about 137 million light-sensitive cells in one square inch? |
Tympanic membrane | What is the more common name for the tympanic membrane ? - Euask.com | What is the more common name for the tympanic membrane? |
Erythrocyte | Red blood cells are also known as RBCs, red cells, red blood corpuscles, haematids, erythroid cells or erythrocytes (from Greek erythros for "red" and kytos for "hollow vessel", with -cyte translated as "cell" in modern usage). Packed red blood cells (pRBC) are red blood cells that have been donated, processed, and stored in a blood bank for blood transfusion. | What is the name for a red blood cell? |
Trachea | The scientific name for "windpipe" is the: A. esophagus B. villi C. trachea D. epiglottis | What is the scientific name for the windpipe? |
Ovaria | Ovarian follicles are the essential units of female reproductive biology, each of which is packed with roughly spherical aggregations of cells found in the ovary . A Graafian follicle, or ovarian follicle, is present inside an ovary and is a minute cyst within which an egg, or ovum, develops. A Graafian follicle is a follicle that ruptures and releases its ovum when stimulated. Generally, women are born with many undeveloped follicles, each containing an immature ovum. As soon as puberty is attained and menstruation commences, one ovum matures each month inside its containing follicle. The follicle grows bigger and breaks at around day 14 of the cycle , discharging the ovum in a process known as ovulation. | Where do the Graafian follicles develop? |