When and where in the world are we?
This state’s Palace Amusements building featured a mural of a grinning figure named Tillie. This state’s purportedly haunted Clinton Road and Shades of Death Road were discussed in the first book of what became the Weird U.S. series. Schools in this state closed in 1909 due to sightings of a cryptid said to be the 13th child of Mother Leeds; that cryptid, found in this state’s (*) Pine Barrens, is a winged, kangaroo-like creature named for this state. A black dog is said to haunt this state’s Absecon Island, home of Atlantic City. For 10 points, what state’s folklore about a namesake Devil inspired the name of its NHL team in Newark?
New Jersey
A member of this group opens an autobiographical theme paper by mentioning “Paul Newman and a ride home.” That member of this group reminds Cherry Valance that “some of us watch the sunset too.” To keep his friend from drowning, a member of this group kills Bob Sheldon, who wears rings on his fingers. Two of members of this group rescue schoolchildren from a burning church, but the (*) roof collapses on one of them and breaks his back. After one member of this group recites “Nothing Gold Can Stay,” his friend Johnny Cade tells him to “stay gold.” For 10 points, Sodapop and Ponyboy are members of what clique, who clash with the Socs in a book by S.E. Hinton
Greasers
This character, who works as a neurobiologist, receives her undergraduate degree from Harvard and specializes in the study of substance addiction in primates. She is an avid player of the harp and frequently references her "bestie" Penny. Introduced as an online dating match for her future husband, she later shared in a Nobel Prize for her work on super-asymmetry theory. Name this character from The Big Bang Theory, portrayed by Mayim Bialik.
Amy Farah Fowler
These animals name a cold, dry “steppe” biome that dominated during much of the Pleistocene. The “pygmy” type of these animals lived exclusively on the Channel Islands off the coast of what is now Los Angeles. 61 of these animals were found at a namesake site in the Black Hills, most of them of the “Columbian” species. Though they're not (*) elephants, the remains of these animals have become a popular source of ivory since ivory from them is not regulated. About 4,000 years ago, the last of these animals on Wrangel Island went extinct. For 10 points, name these large prehistoric mammals that have a “wooly” species and are related to elephants
mammoths
This person’s alleged use of a cigar with a man was corroborated in the Drudge Report. Phone calls with this person were recorded on advice from Lucianne Goldberg. Testimony about this person included the phrase “it depends on what the meaning of the word ‘is’ is.” Linda Tripp encouraged this person to save an article of clothing that was eventually given to (*) Whitewater investigator Kenneth Starr. A stained blue dress worn by this person led to a scandal resulting in the second-ever presidential impeachment. For 10 points, name this White House intern who was involved in an extramarital affair with Bill Clinton
Monica Lewinsky
This country’s most famous cathedral survived the 1911 Kebin earthquake despite being built without nails. The Dike Kokaral dam was built in this modern-day country’s southeast, where Lake Balkhash rests at the foot of the Tian Shan mountains. This modern-day country contains the world’s first (*) spaceport, the Baikonur Cosmodrome. In 2022, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev (“toke-eye-ev”) renamed this country’s capital city so that it no longer honors Nursultan Nazarbayev. For 10 points, name this landlocked Central Asian nation governed from Astana and whose largest city is Almaty
Kazhakstan
This poet “disappeared in the dead of winter” according to a poem memorializing him that states “Poetry makes nothing happen.” This poet compares “God’s holy fire” to “the gold mosaic of a wall” in one poem. The speaker of a poem by this poet dreams of “A drunken, vainglorious lout” and claims that “All has changed, changed utterly.” This poet, who repeatedly states “A (*) terrible beauty is born” in that poem, wrote “an aged man is but a paltry thing” in another poem that begins “That is no country for old men.” For 10 points, name this Irish poet of “Easter, 1916” and “Sailing to Byzantium.”
William Butler Yeats
The appearance of a type of these events can be measured with the Danjon scale, and their gamma describes how centrally they occur. The inex and saros cycles are used to predict these events every 29 and 18 years, respectively. In some of these events, Baily’s beads may be seen along with shadow bands caused by (*) atmospheric turbulence. Due to axial parallelism, these events can only occur in pairs approximately six months apart. The “annular” form of these events can be observed in the antumbra of the Moon. For 10 points, name these events where either the Earth or the Moon casts a shadow on the other by blocking sunlight
Eclipses
This character is compared to King Solomon after he settles a dispute over 10 gold-crowns by breaking a cane in half. This man agrees to give himself 3,300 lashes to remove an enchantment, prompting another character to kiss him on the forehead. A group of men toss around this governor of Barataria on a blanket after he refuses to pay an (*) innkeeper who later takes this man’s saddlebags instead. This character is married to Teresa Cascajo and tries to convince his companion not [emphasize] to charge at a group of windmills. For 10 points, name this faithful squire who accompanies Don Quixote.
Sancho Panza
A music video by this artist features people fighting in a wrestling ring and the singer and several people are shown lip-syncing to the song’s “mouth trumpet” solo. In the opening track of this artist’s Grammy-nominated 2024 album, this artist sings “I’d run the risk of losing everything / (*) Sell all my things, become nomadic.” A song from this artist’s album Immunity opens with the lyrics “Every second counts / I don't wanna talk to you anymore” and describes “walking out the door with” the title items. For 10 points, name this artist of the album Charm, whose hits include “Bags” and “Sofia”.
Clairo
Buildings in this city were decorated with carved barnacles and ropes as part of its Manueline architecture, which is exemplified by the Tower of Belém. A monastery dedicated to Saint Jerome in this city became the resting place for several monarchs from the Aviz family. A massive fire in this city began when thousands of candles lit for All Saints’ Day were knocked over. The Marquês de Pombal rebuilt this city after a disaster that (*) Voltaire used to criticize optimism in Candide. An expedition that departed from this city traveled to India under the command of Vasco da Gama. A 1755 earthquake destroyed, for 10 points, what capital of the Portuguese Empire?
Libson
Part of a novel by this author is recounted from a visit to the pirate Gentleman Brown’s deathbed. In another book, this author compares an unnamed city to a “whited sepulchre.” A character in this author’s works gets the title character a job as a post manager in Patusan after he abandons the Patna. A character created by this author claims that a man said the name of his (*) fiancée rather than “the horror! the horror!” This author’s novel Lord Jim is narrated by his recurring character Charles Marlow, who witnesses the death of Colonel Kurtz on the Congo River. For 10 points, name this Polish-English author of Heart of Darkness.
Conrad
hough it’s not damage, the “stress” of this process can be alleviated by ATM and ATR kinases. This process is initiated at “ori” sites. During this process, topo•isomerase helps relieve torsional strain. RNA primers serve as starting points for the formation of Okazaki fragments in this process that sees them later reannealed by a (*) ligase. This semiconservative process occurs during the S-phase of mitosis and includes the formation of a namesake “fork.” Leading and lagging strands are present during this process. For 10 points, DNA polymerase is involved in what process in which new DNA strands are created?
In an interview with The Atlantic, this writer recalls drawing inspiration from a book by W. H. Brands about a certain politician’s “heartbreak.” This writer’s lobbying on behalf of the PROMESA act helped spark a series of 2017 protests during the first performance of one of his works at UPR, which prompted Ricardo Rosselló (“roh-say-YOH”) to offer a new venue. John Bolton took the title of his most recent memoir from a (*) song by this writer in which two characters complain over the renaming of Clermont Street. This writer’s best-known work, inspired by a biography of its subject by Ron Chernow, includes the song “The Room Where It Happens.” The hit musical In the Heights is by, for 10 points, what composer of Hamilton?
Lin Manuel Miranda
Cards in this film have the word “Acquisitions” misspelled. Jean-Paul Sartre’s play No Exit is alluded to in this film’s closing scene with a brown door reading “THIS IS NOT AN EXIT.” This film’s protagonist relentlessly attempts to land a reservation at (*) Dorsia. The song “Hip to Be Square” is critiqued by this film’s protagonist before he murders his colleague Paul Allen. Bret Easton Ellis’ novel of the same name inspired, for 10 points, what 2000 film in which Christian Bale plays investment banker Patrick Bateman?
American Psycho
A queen from this region had to walk over nine hot plowshares in her namesake ordeal. Feudalism was introduced to this region by Richard the Fearless. A man who hailed from this region defeated Alexios I Komnenos at the Battle of Dyrrhachium. Much of southern Italy was conquered by Robert (*) Guiscard (“geese-CAR”), who hailed from this region. Rulers of this region traced their origins to Rollo. A duke from this region landed at Pevensey and won the Battle of Hastings. For 10 points, name this region of France once ruled by William the Conqueror.
Normandy
A character in this play first enters the stage with a telescope before exiting and coming back with a ladder. At the end of this play, a character throws away a toy dog and covers his face with an “old stancher.” In this play, a couple recalls a biking accident in the (*) Ardennes that caused both of them to lose their legs. That elderly couple in this play are unable to kiss because they are confined to separate dustbins. Nag and Nell appear alongside their son Hamm in, for 10 points, what Samuel Beckett play with a chess-inspired title?
Endgame
This phenomenon disappears with “which-path” information in the delayed-choice quantum eraser experiment. Concentric rings caused by this phenomenon are named after Issac Newton. A device named after this phenomenon used a beam splitter to disprove the existence of luminiferous aether. Along with diffraction, a pattern caused by this phenomenon is visible in (*) Young's double-slit experiment. The constructive and destructive types of this phenomenon result from coherent and correlated waves. For 10 points, name this phenomenon in which two waves combine.
Interference
Amyntor asked these beings to deny his son Phoenix from having children. One of these beings possesses Amata to start a war between the Trojans and the Rutulians. Along with the Giants and Meliae, these beings were born from the drops of blood of (*) castrated Ouranos. At the end of one play, these beings are called “the kindly ones” after being appeased by Athena. In that Aeschylus play named after them, these three beings pursue Orestes for matricide. For 10 points, Alecto, Megaera, and Tisiphone were a part of what group of vengeance deities?
Furies
A character played by this actor is stabbed with the splintered hilt of a baseball bat while at the University of Eastern Colorado. In another show, a character played by this actor receives a set of armor in exchange for killing a Krayt dragon. In a 2010s Netflix series, this actor played the partner of (*) DEA agent Steve Murphy. This actor plays a bounty hunter who defeats Grand Moff Gideon in a duel. In a 2023 HBO series, a character played by this actor travels across the country with the Bella Ramsey-played Ellie. Joel Miller and Din Djarin were portrayed by, for 10 points, what star of Narcos, The Last of Us and The Mandalorian?
Pedro Pascal
This state’s all-Black settlement of Nicodemus was settled in 1877 by Exodusters. William Quantrill’s pro-slavery bushwhackers destroyed the Free State Hotel in this state. William Allen White denounced populism in an editorial titled “What’s the Matter with [this state]?” Skirmishes between Free-Staters and Border Ruffians in this state culminated in the (*) Pottawatomie massacre led by John Brown. A bill named for this state and its northern neighbor repealed the Missouri Compromise in favor of “popular sovereignty,” leading to this state’s “Bleeding” period. For 10 points, name this state which appears in an 1854 act before Nebraska.
Kansas
In this novel, characters traveling on Highway 58 stop at Slade’s pool hall before the narrator is ordered to investigate his corrupt mentor, who caused the suicide of Mortimer Littlepaugh. A man nicknamed “The Boss” pressures the narrator of this novel to conduct research on Cass Mastern. A hitchhiker in New Mexico and a (*) politician’s affair with Anne Stanton causes the narrator of this novel to formulate the nihilistic “Great Twitch” theory. For 10 points, Jack Burden works for Willie Stark in what novel by Robert Penn Warren?
All The King's Men
A number with this property is “safe” if it has a corresponding one named for Sophie Germain. Dirichlet’s (“dee-rush-lay’s”) theorem states that certain arithmetic sequences contain an infinite amount of numbers with this property. A collaboration begun by Terence Tao aims to close a “gap” named for this property. Two numbers with this property are (*) “sexy” if they differ by 6 and “twin” if they differ by 2. By the fundamental theorem of arithmetic, any number can be uniquely factorized into numbers with this property. For 10 points, what kind of numbers are only divisible by one and themselves?
primality
A maid who has a habit of slamming doors shut pronounces this character “dead as a doornail.” Two other characters struggle to move this character's heavy desk, which contains his prized fretsaw. At the end of the work he appears in, this character's family takes a trolley ride to the countryside. This character is injured after an (*) apple becomes stuck in his back. Three boarders refuse to pay rent after witnessing this character, who was drawn out of his room by his sister Grete's violin playing. For 10 points, what traveling salesman is transformed into a “monstrous vermin” in Franz Kafka's story “The Metamorphosis”?
Samsa
It’s not Ken, but Dom Nero of Esquire describes this figure as a “hollow absence of a character”. In one video, etymology_nerd stated that this character “is lowering his velum (“VEE-lum”) to allow air to enter the nasal cavity”. In one game where this character appears, players are warned to “watch out for his sparky sticker”. This character’s name was conceived in its original language as a (*) portmanteau of a word meaning “bad” and the name of his tennis opponent. One meme highlights this character’s colour scheme’s exact match with the non-binary flag. This character’s hat depicts a sticker of a vertically reflected capital L. For 10 points, name this lanky purple-and-black-clothed Nintendo character, originally introduced as Wario’s tennis doubles partner
Waluigi