Construction
This type of wall carries weight from the floors or roof above it?
Load bearing wall
Which ancient philosopher taught by asking a series of probing questions?
Socrates
He used disciplined questioning to expose assumptions and clarify ideas.
Which country is the largest producer and exporter of crude oil in the world as of recent years?
Saudi Arabia
Which ancient civilization built the city of Machu Picchu?
Inca
What is the term for plants that complete their entire life cycle in one growing season?
Annuals
This curved section of pipe under a sink prevents sewer gases from entering the home.
P-trap
What is the name of the philosophical view that holds that moral values are not objective but depend on cultural or individual perspectives?
Moral Relativism
The majority of the world's rare earth elements, crucial for smartphones and electric vehicles, are mined and processed in which country?
China (controls roughly 70% of mining and 90% of processing)
Which invention by James Watt greatly improved the efficiency of engines in the 18th century?
The Steam Engine
What pigment gives plants their green color and is essential for photosynthesis?
Chlorophyll
The most common roofing material used on single-family homes in the U.S.? (Material required)
Asphalt Shingles
Which philosopher famously declared “God is dead"? Bonus for 300: And what broader cultural shift was he critiquing with this claim?
Friedrich Nietzsche
He was critiquing the decline of traditional religious and moral frameworks in modern Western society.
Which spice was once so valuable that it sparked European exploration of sea routes to Asia and was worth more than its weight in gold in medieval Europe?
Black pepper (also accept: various spices like cloves, nutmeg, or cinnamon)
Who was the first emperor of Rome?
Augustus (aka Octavian)
Which part of the flower develops into the fruit after fertilization?
The ovary
What are the three wires in an outlet called?
Which Enlightenment philosopher argued that knowledge comes primarily from experience, not innate ideas?
John Locke
Which country is the world's largest exporter of cut flowers, supplying roughly 40% of the global market?
The Netherlands (though many flowers are grown in Kenya, Ecuador, and Colombia before being traded through Dutch flower auctions)
Which ancient wonder of the world is the only one still standing today?
The Great Pyramid of Giza
What nutrient is most responsible for promoting leafy green growth in garden plants?
Nitrogen
This safety device is required in residential bathrooms, kitchens, and exterior outlets to prevent electric shock.
GFCI
In Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, what do the shadows on the wall represent?
They represent illusions or false beliefs
The shadows symbolize appearances mistaken for reality by those who lack philosophical understanding.
What ancient product was so important to the Roman economy that soldiers were sometimes paid in it, giving us the word "salary"?
Salt
Which explorer is credited with being the first European to reach India by sea, sailing around Africa?
Vasco De Gama
Legume crops like soybeans and peas have a symbiotic relationship with bacteria that allows them to fix which element from the atmosphere?
Nitrogen