Current News & Events
Which nearby city experienced a fire this past Monday (Oct. 11th)? Bonus 100 points: What was the name of the fire?
American Canyon, the Newell Fire.
Kentucky! The 4.7 million barrels of bourbon in the state outnumber the 4.3 million residents!
What is Etymology?
The study of the history of words.
In the 18th century, "twirlblasts" and "twirlwinds" referred to what phenomenon?
Tornadoes!
In 1859, the U.S. almost went to war with Canada over what animal?
A pig! A British owned pig wandered into an American farmer's garden and consumed his vegetables, and so the farmer killed the pig, and things escalated from there through the community, warships arrived, and finally an Admiral said he would not have war over a pig.
The Supreme Court is currently hearing death penalty arguments for Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. Which bomber is he?
The Boston Marathon Bomber
Name the title of the song that features the lyrics "Should old acquaintance be forgot...".
Auld Lang Syne
True or False: Assassin has an origin in an Arabic drug called Hashish?
True! Hashish is a cannabis resin, which was smoked recreationally a long time ago. The origin for assassin lies in folklore about a band of men who smoke the drug and then are instructed to murder by their leader.
Dust mixed with wind is referred to as what?
Black blizzards.
Name the woman who was elected to congress four years before women were legally allowed to vote.
Jeanette Rankin, in 1916.
Attorney General Josh Shapiro has announced his bid for governor of what state?
Pennsylvania.
True or False: The longest book title contains 1,913 words.
False! The longest book title contains 1,809 words (11,284 characters)!
The modern word for hipster was derived from the 1930s term "hepster". What did hepster refer to?
Someone in the Jazz scene.
What weather pattern always follows a volcanic eruption?
Lightning.
True or False: The Iron Maiden was one of the known methods of torture in medieval Europe.
False! It actually never existed as a torture device, but rather used as a way to push the narrative of an "uncivilized era of violence and mayhem."
What new Netflix show has hit record views?
Squid Games, a Korean show.
Name the animal that was sacrificed by the Incas wearing earrings, a necklace, and some even "wrapped like sushi".
Guinea pigs. Over 100 had been found at a site, clearly sacrificed, and adorned in various earrings, necklaces, and some "wrapped in cotton rugs like sushi".
The origin of the phrase "cut to the chase" comes from what era of Hollywood?
The silent film era, where "one of the tenets of style was to highlight the action sequences of a movie".
What is the term for transparent ice on a roadway?
Black ice.
Name the type of hat most widely used by Cowboys in the West!
Bowler hats. Stetsons (the common hat we associate with cowboys) weren't a thing.
The "Pillar of Shame", a 26-foot-high sculpture commemorating victims of a massacre, is set to be removed from the University of Hong Kong campus in a controversial move by the Beijing government. What massacre does this sculpture commemorate?
The 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre.
What is the name for Twitter's animated bird?
Larry
Buck is a clipped version of buckskins, which was used as a unit of commerce in the American Frontier.
What is a fire whirl?
A tornado made from heavy winds mixed with heavy wildfire.
Who said the famous line "Let them eat cake!"
No one. Marie Antoinette, the historical figure most associated with this phrase, never actually said it. The phrase came from an autobiography by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who contributed the line to a "princess".