General Knowledge
What was the first civilization to develop a writing system?
The Sumerians, with their cuneiform script.
What form of Japanese theater, combining music, dance, and drama, became highly popular during the Edo period?
Kabuki theater
What is unique about the way George Washington ran his presidency?
He voluntarily limited himself to two terms, setting an unofficial precedent later codified in the 22nd Amendment.
What is the fastest land animal?
The cheetah, reaching speeds up to 75 mph (120 km/h).
1. The Smullyan Island Riddle (Knights and Knaves with a Twist)
On an island, there are knights, who always tell the truth, and knaves, who always lie. You meet three inhabitants, A, B, and C. They make the following statements:
What are A, B, and C?
1. The Smullyan Island Riddle (Knights and Knaves with a Twist)
A says: "I am not a knight."
If A were a knight, this statement would be false, which contradicts the rule that knights always tell the truth. Therefore, A is a knave.
C says: "A is lying."
Since A is a knave, A's statement is indeed a lie. Therefore, C is a knight.
B says: "At least one of us is a knight."
Since C is a knight, B's statement is true. Therefore, B is a knight.
Answer: A is a knave, B is a knight, C is a knight.
Which country has the most time zones?
France, including its overseas territories (12 time zones).
What is the only mammal capable of true flight?
bat!
What unique event happens every evening under the Congress Avenue Bridge in Austin? What nickname does Austin, Texas, hold?
Over 1.5 million Mexican free-tailed bats emerge, forming the largest urban bat colony in North America. The "Live Music Capital of the World."
What is the historic document, signed in 1215, limited the power of the English monarchy and is considered a cornerstone of constitutional law.
Magna Carta
2. The Hardest Logic Puzzle Ever (By George Boolos)
You are tasked with determining the identities of three gods: Truth, who always tells the truth; False, who always lies; and Random, who answers randomly. You may ask them three yes-or-no questions in total. Each god understands English, but they respond in their own language, where "ja" and "da" mean "yes" and "no," but you don't know which is which.
How do you determine which god is which?
2. The Hardest Logic Puzzle Ever
Ask God 1: "If I asked you whether God 2 is Random, would you say 'ja'?"
This works because the truth or lie gets flipped depending on the answer, and Random's randomness doesn’t affect the question.
Use similar reasoning to identify Truth and False by strategically layering questions about one another.
Answer: After three questions, you can identify all three gods.
What is the only continent without an active volcano?
Australia
Which animal’s fingerprints are so similar to humans that they can confuse crime scene investigators?
koala!
What is CRISPR-Cas9, and why is it revolutionary in the field of genetic engineering?
CRISPR-Cas9 is a gene-editing tool that allows scientists to cut DNA at specific locations and modify genes with precision. Its simplicity, cost-effectiveness, and accuracy make it revolutionary for medical research, agriculture, and treating genetic disorders.
IBM’s Deep Blue defeated Garry Kasparov, making it into a landmark moment in artificial intelligence and chess history.
1. What was Deep blue? How many positions could it evaluate per second? (*this is a specific number)
2. how many times was Kasparov world champion?
3. Where and when (year) did this match take place?
1. Deep Blue was a specialized chess computer developed by IBM, capable of evaluating 200 million positions per second.
2. three
3. new york (1997)
How many grandmasters exist in India and U.S.? What is the country with most grandmasters and how many?
India: 85-95
U.S.: 100-120
- Russia: 270
What element has the highest melting point?
Tungsten (3422°C or 6192°F).
At what age did Queen Elizabeth II become the Queen of the United Kingdom and what year was that?
She became Queen at the age of 25 after her father, King George VI, passed away in 1952.
What was Nintendo's original business when it was founded in 1889?
Nintendo started as a playing card company, producing handmade hanafuda cards used in Japanese card games.
Which country's national anthem did Karen learn first?
Nicaragua
You have two identical eggs and a 100-story building. Your task is to determine the highest floor from which you can drop an egg without it breaking. What is the minimum number of drops required to guarantee a solution, and how do you achieve it?
The minimum number of drops required is 14.
Explanation: Drop the first egg from floors in increments of decreasing size (e.g., 14th, 27th, 39th, etc.). If it breaks, use the second egg to test the floors below. This strategy minimizes the worst-case scenario.
What was the first artificial satellite launched into space? and what year?
Sputnik 1, by the Soviet Union in 1957.
You are in a dark room with three light switches. Each switch controls one of three light bulbs in another room that you cannot see into. You can only enter the other room once to determine which switch corresponds to which bulb. How do you figure it out?
Turn on the first switch and leave it on for a few minutes, then turn it off. Immediately turn on the second switch and leave the third switch off. When you enter the other room:
One piece: rarely mentioned island, located in the West Blue, is the birthplace of Gol D. Roger, the Pirate King.
Loguetown!
What is the longest word in the English language? (you can get half point if you describe what it is)
Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis (a type of lung disease).
Salil’s dream lingered as vividly as if it were real. In the dream, Karen stood in her new mechanic shop, surrounded by loyal workers, the past firmly behind her. On the wall of the shop was a message she had written—one that had puzzled Salil:
"Loyalty is earned, trust is given, but truth reveals the path."
Beneath the message hung three sets of keys, each labeled with cryptic phrases:
Karen’s workers explained to her that one set of keys unlocked her uncle’s old safe, which had been retrieved from the explosion site. The safe contained one final truth about her uncle’s betrayal.
Karen thought carefully and realized the labels referred to three numbers—dates significant to her journey. Each number corresponded to a critical year:
Using these numbers, Karen cracked the combination of the safe. What is the three-digit combination, and how did she figure it out?
The combination is 8-0-9.
Explanation:
The combination is derived by summing the last two digits of each year: