Trees & Plants
True or false: The black walnut husk can be used as a dye. And for 100 bonus points: can black walnut trees be tapped to make syrup?
True
Yes
True or False: Hummingbirds consume up to half their body weight in sugar per day?
True
Can Plantain leaves be eaten raw? And for 400 bonus points: Illinois is one of the top wintering spots in all of the U.S. for what famous bird?
Yes
The bald eagle
What is the first thing I do in the morning after I take the dogs outside?
For 100 bonus points: how many times did I roll on the balls down stairs this week while everyone was at school and work?
Make the smoothie
3
Can Plantain leaves be eaten raw?
Yes
Acorns can be eaten right off the ground, as long as you check for worms first?
No, they have a poison in them called tannins. They can only be eaten through a lot of processing and boiling and drying out and grinding.
True or false: A single coyote can sound like a whole pack.
True; they do this to confuse prey.
What town sits on top of one of the purest silica sand deposits on earth (99.5 % pure silica or glass sand)? For 1000 bonus points: What is "The bird that devours man," called by the ancient Indians who dwelled near the cliffs by Alton, IL.
Ottawa, Illinois. It is the largest in North America. Used to make high-quality glass, beekers and smartphone screens, etc. They ship more than 2 million tons a year.
Piasa
Jacques Marquette in 1673, in his journal, he described two monsters painted high on the rock face near present-day Alton. He wrote that they were as large as a calf with horns like a deer, red [music] eyes, a beard like a tiger, a face something like a man's, the body covered in scales, and a long tail wrapping all the way around. He wrote that the two creatures were painted so well and so high up the sheer cliff that he could not understand how anyone had reached the spot to make them. And he admitted the site frightened his hardened crew. A trained Jesuit explorer putting in writing that a painting on a rock unsettled men who feared almost nothing.
What did I say to you when you were little and we were looking at Christmas lights?
For 100 bonus points: did I dream about Gabriel riding a blue wolf last night, or June catching a giant rainbow trout?
Woooow
Giant rainbow trout
True or False: Goldenrod, if eaten, will cause extreme allergic reactions; there have been some reported deaths.
False; the seeds, flowers, and leaves are edible. Young leaves taste best, they can be eaten raw or cooked. The flowers can be dried and used as a tea. Seeds can be powdered and used to thicken soups or stews. Goldenrod treats a variety of issues from digestive to cancer.
From what part of the Japanese Honeysuckle bush can we make an anti-viral tea? And for 100 bonus points, which part of the bush is poisonous?
Flowers
Berries
True or False: Coyotes have been known to team up with raccoons to hunt.
False; they've been known to team up with badgers. The coyote chases, the badger digs, a perfect duo.
Chicago is sitting on a meteor crater or a giant sinkhole? For 100 bonus points: Which is flatter, Kansas or Illinois? For 300 bonus points, what is the flattest state in the U.S.?
Meteor crater
Illinois
Florida
Favorite flavor of iced coffee?
Peppermint white mocha
Why is the fish a symbol for Christ
Antivemon for a snake bite is made from a lamb's blood.
Can black walnut trees be used to make soap? And for 100 bonus points: which part of the tree can be used to eliminate parasites in our bodies?
No, they only color the soap
Nut
Raccoons first appeared in the U.S. in the 1950s. Which states?
A) Texas and Oklahoma
B) Illinois and Iowa
C) Wyoming and Montana
D) Nevada and Utah
Western Wyoming and Montana
What is the meaning of the word Illinois?
For 100 bonus points: how many miles of railroad does Illinois have?
A) 8000 miles
B) 4000 miles
C) 10,000 miles
D) 2000 miles
Iliniwok: "men" or "warriors"
8000 miles, longest in the U.S., except for Texas
How many times have I sprained my ankles really bad in my life? The bad ones, NOT rolling them. For 500 bonus points: When was the first time, or what was the circumstance?
3
5th grade, playing with a friend at her house, wearing high heels, going down her wood basement steps (they were like Grandpa's basement steps)
The speed of light in a vacuum is approximately 186,400 miles per second. Read Numbers 2:3 and Numbers 2:9. Notice anything?
Okay, now the question: What animal does not fart? Hint: It doesn't sweat either.
The tribe of Judah, was to be positioned at the point of the rising sun, east of the Tabernacle (Numbers 2:3). The Jews were called the children of light. In Numbers 2:9, the tribe of Judah had 186,400 people. Funny that's approximately the speed of light.
Kangaroos
What part of the black walnut tree was used to clean the interior iron framework of the Statue of Liberty?
Crushed black walnut shells; it produces the hardest shells of any tree nut in the world. The shells are an ideal material for abrasive sandblasting. They used them so the sandblasting wouldn't scratch or thin out the soft copper metal.
Why do Opossums play dead?
They aren't playing dead. They get so terrified that they go into a coma-like state. Their bodies shut down.
In 1838, a minister moved to Princeton. He gave many antislavery sermons. And in 1843, he was arrested for harboring slaves. He later went on to be a congressman and a key voice against slavery. What was his name? And for 500 bonus points: How deep is the deepest part of Lake Michigan?
Owen Lovejoy
Over 900 feet
Have I ever broken a window? And which one, what circumstance? And for 1000 points: What childhood thing of mine did Gabriel and June break? Hint...
Garage door window with the tennis racket and ball.
My rocking chair.
Why is the fish a symbol of Christianity?
The Greek word for fish is ICHTHYS, it's an ancient Christian acronym that saved lives when the Romans were persecuting the Christians. It means:
Jesus, Christ, God, Son, Savior
A way to remember what and who Jesus was and is.
It was used a greeting between believers; one person would draw a curved line, if the other person completed the drawing of the fish, then they both knew they were Christians.