Science
Why do you see lightning a few seconds before you hear the thunder?
Light travels significantly faster than sound
Which architectural feature did the ancient Romans perfect that allowed them to build massive structures like the Colosseum and aqueducts without them collapsing under their own weight?
The arch (or vault)
What geographical feature creates a natural border between France and Spain?
The Pyrenees Mountains
In the movie Inside Out, which core emotion is depicted as a glowing blue character who constantly feels weighed down?
sadness
What is the only mammal capable of true, sustained flapping flight?
The Bat
Bananas are naturally slightly radioactive because they are rich in an isotope of which specific element?
Potassium
Before the invention of refrigerators, what massive commodity trade relied on harvesting frozen blocks from lakes in winter and shipping them worldwide wrapped in sawdust?
The Ice Trade
Iceland is famous for its massive glaciers, but it also uses what type of natural underground energy to heat roughly 90% of its homes?
Geothermal energy
What specific classical instrument uses a horsehair bow, four strings, and is the smallest and highest-pitched member of its main orchestral family?
Violin
Why are standard tennis balls deliberately manufactured to be fuzzy instead of completely smooth?
The fuzz creates drag/friction with the air, slowing the ball down and allowing players to put spin on it.
What unique property of water explains why ice floats on top of a lake instead of sinking to the bottom?
Water expands as it freezes, making ice less dense than liquid water
In 1858, the UK Parliament had to suspend its sessions because the River Thames was so choked with untreated human waste that the smell was unbearable. What is this historical event called?
the great stink
The Point Nemo pole of inaccessibility is the furthest place on Earth from any landmass. If you were floating there, who would technically be the closest human beings to you?
The astronauts on the International Space Station (when it passes overhead at about 400 km up).
In the original Star Wars films, the terrifying vocal sound effects for the TIE Fighters were created by mixing the sound of a car driving on a wet pavement with the roar of what animal?
an elephant
ombats are famous for producing feces shaped like what geometric object?
a cube
When you see a glowing neon sign, what state of matter are you actually looking at inside the tube, created because the gas molecules have been stripped of their electrons?
Plasma
Long before European explorers arrived, which Mesoamerican civilization built a highly complex, interconnected highway system through the steep Andes mountains without using the wheel?
The Incas (The Inca Road system)
Which African nation is the only country in the world to be entirely surrounded by a single other country (South Africa)?
Lesotho
What is the musical term for a song or composition where two or more voices sing the exact same melody, but start at different times (like "Row, Row, Row Your Boat")?
a round
Why are the pages of old, cheap paperback books highly prone to turning yellow and becoming brittle over time when exposed to air and sunlight?
They contain lignin (a natural substance in wood pulp that turns yellow and acidic when it oxidizes).
Why do your muscles get incredibly sore and stiff a day or two after a heavy workout?
DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness), which is caused by microscopic tears in the muscle fibers and the resulting inflammation
During the Cold War, the US military accidentally dropped a nuclear bomb on a field in North Carolina due to a mechanical failure. It didn't detonate because a single low-voltage switch stayed off. In which decade did this happen?
1960s
Due to tectonic plate movement, which two continents are moving further apart from each other at a rate of about 2.5 centimeters per year—roughly the same speed your fingernails grow?
North America and Europe (or Africa and South America, due to the Mid-Atlantic Ridge splitting).
Which famous 1990s animated movie was the very first feature-length film to be generated entirely using computer animation (CGI)?
toystory
What is the specific name for the small, metal wire cage that holds the cork inside a bottle of champagne or sparkling wine to prevent it from shooting out under pressure?
A muselet.