Knowledge & Education
Art & Creativity
Poetry & Speech
Music & Composition
Language & Culture
100
The name of the oldest college/university in the United States
Answer: What is Harvard College or Harvard University? (either/both answer(s) will be accepted, as both are correct)
Background: Harvard University, founded in 1636, is the oldest university in the US located in Cambridge, MA. Harvard College is the four year undergraduate college at Harvard University. Both were the first institutions of higher education in the original English colonies and are considered a part of the prestigious Ivy League. Harvard was named after John Harvard, its first benefactor. The College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, VA is the second-oldest institution of higher education and was founded soon after in 1693.
Source: Google; wm.edu
100
The artist who painted the Mona Lisa, a piece considered to be perhaps, the most famous painting in the world
Answer: Who is Leonardo Da Vinci?
Background: The Mona Lisa is a painting by Leonardo da Vinci that depicts Lisa del Giocondo, the wife of a wealthy Florentine silk merchant, and in present day, is on display in the Louvre Museum in Paris. The painting is protected by bulletproof glass and a thick steel display case. The painting's mysterious smile has fascinated viewers for centuries.
Source: Google
100
This poet received the Nobel Prize for Literature, and was India's and Asia's first ever Nobel Laureate
Answer: Who is Rabindranath Tagore?
Background: Rabindranath Tagore, born in Kolkata, India, was the first person from India and the first person from Asia to win the Nobel Prize in 1913. The Nobel Prize in Literature was granted to him in honor of his work Geetanjali.
Source: UN Academy
100
The main chemical element found in the composition of the air we breathe
Answer: What is nitrogen?
Background: Air is primarily composed of 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, 0.93% argon, and 0.04% carbon dioxide, with trace amounts of other gases like helium, neon, methane, hydrogen, and water vapor depending on humidity levels.
Source: Google
100
The national and most commonly spoken language in Brazil
Answer: What is Portuguese?
Background: Portuguese is the official and national language of Brazil, being widely spoken by nearly all of its population. Brazil is the most populous Portuguese-speaking country in the world.
Source: https://www.worlddata.info/country-comparison.php?country1=BRA&country2=PRT
200
The streamlined application used for undergraduate college admissions that applicants may use to apply to over 1,000 member colleges and universities in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia, as well as in Canada, China, Japan, and many European countries
Answer: What is the Common Application or Common App?
Background: The Common Application (more frequently known as the Common App) is an undergraduate college admission application that applicants may use to apply to over 1,000 member colleges and universities. The Common App includes personal statement prompts, transcripts, and letters of recommendation, and allows students to keep track of all their applications in one system.
Source: Wikipedia
200
This individual invented the moving assembly line technique, paving the path for mass production in the automobile industry
Answer: Who is Henry Ford?
Background: Henry Ford of the Ford Motor Company is often credited with inventing the moving assembly line for cars in 1913. The assembly line revolutionized the manufacturing process for the Ford Model T and became a model for mass production around the world.
Source: Google
200
This individual was a prominent leader in the civil rights movement and is widely known for the speech titled "I Have A Dream"
Answer: Who is Martin Luther King Jr. or MLK Jr.? (MLK without the Jr. will NOT be accepted)
Background: Martin Luther King Jr.'s most famous speech is "I Have a Dream", which he delivered at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in 1963. In this speech, King called for an end to racism and for civil and economic rights for all Americans.
200
The word(s) which completes the line of the famous song/bhajan "Maata Saraswati ________"
Answer: What is Shardha?
Background: Maata Saraswati Sharda is a song from the movie, Alaap, featuring artists Dilraj Kaur and Lata Mangeshkar.
Source: Google
200
The name of the characters in the Chinese language, which are logographic symbols representing meaning, often words or phrases, rather than just sounds
Answer: What is Hanzi? (pronounced haan-zuh in Chinese)
Background: Unlike letters in the English alphabet, Hanzi typically conveys a whole word or concept. There are tens of thousands of Chinese characters, though the average person only needs to know a few thousand to read effectively. The Chinese have the oldest writing system that is still in use today. These characters are made up of strokes and therefore, the art of writing Chinese characters is called calligraphy.
Source: Google; Wikipedia
300
The Hindu religious text known to have documented the earliest mention of Maa Saraswati
Answer: What is the Rig Veda?
Background: The earliest known mention of Saraswati as a goddess is in the Rig Veda. She has remained significant as a goddess from the Vedic period through the modern period.
Source: Wikipedia
300
The name of an Academy favorite, multi-Oscar nominee musical featuring Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone, which was mistakenly announced the Winner of Best Picture
Answer: What is La La Land?
Background: Despite being mistakenly announced as the Winner of Best Picture at the 2017 Academy Awards, "La La Land" is famous for its visually stunning cinematography, captivating music score, and the strong performances by Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling, all of which created a visually and emotionally immersive experience for viewers.
Source: Google; https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3783958/
300
This individual was accused of delivering a plagiarized speech on the historic opening night of the Republican National Convention
Answer: Who is Melania Trump?
Background: In a statement issued by the Trump campaign, staff writer Meredith McIver accepted responsibility for the usage of Michelle Obama's words verbatim from a 2008 speech in Melania's 2016 opening night speech. McIver says she offered her resignation, which was rejected by Donald Trump, as he stated "...people make innocent mistakes and that we learn and grow from these experiences," wrote McIver.
300
The name of a metal that is found in liquid form at room temperature
Answer: What is mercury?
Background: Mercury is the only metal that exists as a liquid under Standard Temperature & Pressure (STP). Mercury has a low melting point of -38.9oC, which means it readily becomes liquid at typical room temperatures. This unique property is due to its atomic structure and weak metallic bonding between mercury atoms.
300
The full name and the specific location of the world's largest religious festival, also documented as the world's largest human gathering of all time, considered to be colorful and centered around a series of holy baths to purify sins
(Hint: This is a 2 part answer. You must answer both parts correctly to receive any points. Failure to answer both parts correctly will result in a full point deduction.)
Answer: What is the Maha Khumb Mela? What is Prayagraj, UP, India? (Failure to say Maha before Khumb Mela will NOT be accepted. India without specifying a state and/or city will NOT be accepted.)
Background: A "Kumbh Mela" is a Hindu religious festival celebrated every three years at four different locations (Haridwar, Ujjain, Nashik, and Prayagraj), while a "Maha Kumbh Mela" is a much larger and more significant event that occurs only once every 12 years in correlation with the rotation of Jupiter, primarily at Prayagraj, UP. The Maha Khumbh Mela is considered the most sacred of all Kumbh Melas, drawing significantly larger crowds due to its rarity and spiritual importance. It is a centuries-old festival that involves a series of holy baths in the Ganges, Yamuna, and Saraswati rivers, where Hindus believe that bathing in these sacred waters cleanses their sins.
400
This celebrity received an honorary doctorate degree from New York University in 2018, flooding media outlets and sparking controversy
Answer: Who is Taylor Swift?
Background: Taylor Swift received an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts from NYU on May 18, 2022 for her outstanding achievements in the music and art industry. She was recognized and gave a speech at NYU's commencement ceremony, annually held at Yankee Stadium. Other recipients of honorary degrees from NYU include Aretha Franklin, former president Bill Clinton, and civil rights leader John Lewis.
400
Joining the S&P 500 in the latter half of 2024, this company's stock made historic triple digit gains, making it the best performing S&P 500 stock of 2024
Answer: What is Palantir or Palantir Technologies?
Background: Palantir builds data-driven intelligence applications that use AI to analyze large amounts of complex data. AI dominated the stock market in 2024, pushing companies like Palantir to see a massive 340% surge in its stock price, making it the best performing S&P 500 stock of 2024. Palantir’s work with the Department of Defense has been particularly impactful, closing multiple contracts, each upwards of 400 million USD.
400
A Japanese form of poetry consisting of 3 lines, where the 1st line is 5 syllables, the 2nd line is 7 syllables, and the 3rd line is 5 syllables
Answer: What is a haiku?
Background: The haiku is a Japanese poetic form that consists of three lines, with five syllables in the first line, seven in the second, and five in the third. This poem typically captures a moment in nature or time, or a simple observation. The haiku originally developed from the hokku, which are the opening three lines of a longer poem known as a tanka. The haiku became a separate form of poetry in the 17th century.
400
The name or indication of this musical symbol
Answer: What is treble clef or G clef? (either answer is acceptable)
Background: The treble clef is a symbol used in global music theory to indicate the use of high-pitched notes. It's also known as the G-clef because the innermost curl of the symbol encircles the note G on the second line of the staff. The treble clef is used for the right hand on a piano or keyboard, as well as other high-pitched instruments like the flute, clarinet, violin, or trumpet, and can even be used for guitar or voice.
Source: Google
400
The full name and the specific location of the world's largest folk festival, now popularly celebrated in countries all over the world, including the US, and widely known for its costumes and parades
(Hint: This is a 2 part answer. You must answer both parts correctly to receive any points. Failure to answer both parts correctly will result in a full point deduction.)
Answer: What is Oktoberfest? What is Munich, Germany? (Germany without specifying a city will be accepted)
Background: Oktoberfest, held in Munich, Germany is the world's largest folk festival, celebrating Bavarian culture. It's known for its beer, costumes (dirndls for women and lederhosen for men), food, parades, and carnival. It was originally a one-day event, but has since grown to include a traveling carnival and two weeks of festivities - all celebrated from mid September to early October.
Source: Google; https://www.mikesbiketours.com/blog/munichs-oktoberfest-the-worlds-largest-folk-festival/
500
The collapse of this firm, once part of what was formerly known as the Big 5, in the 2002 Enron scandal resulted in what we know today as the Big 4
Answer: What is Arthur Andersen?
Background: The Big 5 accounting firms were Deloitte & Touche, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Ernst & Young, KPMG, and Arthur Andersen. Arthur Andersen collapsed in 2002 after the Enron scandal, and its work was divided among the remaining four firms, which became known as the Big 4.
Source: Google
500
This celebrity silently announced their engagement at the 2025 Golden Globes
Answer: Who is Zendaya?
Background: Zendaya & Tom Holland's engagement was confirmed after she was seen wearing a large diamond ring at the 2025 Golden Globes. Reports state that Holland proposed to Zendaya at home during the 2024 holiday season. Zendaya and Tom Holland met in 2016 while filming Spider-Man: Homecoming. They played love interests, MJ and Peter Parker, in the Marvel franchise.
Source: Google
500
The famous speech given by the 16th US President during the American Civil War which started with, "Fourscore and seven years ago our fathers brought forth, on this continent, a new nation,...dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal"
Answer: What is the Gettysburg Address?
Background: The Gettysburg Address is a famous speech which U.S. President Abraham Lincoln delivered during the American Civil War. This speech honored the sacrifice of over fifty thousand men who laid down their lives in the Battle of Gettysburg and declared that the United States had to stand as a country where all men are created equal and should be treated as equals.
500
The name of both the male actor and female actress who played the leads in the classic film featuring Maria and the Von Trapp family
(Hint: This is a 2 part answer. You must answer both parts correctly to receive any points. Failure to answer both parts correctly will result in a full point deduction.)
Answer: Who is Julie Andrews? Who is Christopher Plummer?
Background: On March 2, 1965, 20th Century Fox released The Sound of Music starring Julie Andrews as Maria Rainer and Christopher Plummer as Captain Georg von Trapp. Popular hits from this film feature songs like My Favorite Things, Do Re Mi, and So Long, Farewell.
Source: Google
500
The full name and the specific location of arguably one of the largest cultural festivals in the world, celebrated to commence the beginning of Lent
(Hint: This is a 2 part answer. You must answer both parts correctly to receive any points. Failure to answer both parts correctly will result in a full point deduction.)
Answer: What is the Rio Carnival or Rio de Janeiro Carnival? What is in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil? (Brazil without specifying the city will be accepted)
Background: The Rio Carnival is a week-long festival that celebrates Brazilian culture, history, and traditions. It's held annually in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, before the start of Lent and is known for its parades, parties, and open-air performances. The carnival is a way to celebrate the history, culture, and traditions of Brazil. It also incorporates African influences, such as elaborate masks and costumes.
Source: Google; https://www.riocarnaval.org/