Esoteric Knowledge Quiz #4

Do your friends, family, and coworkers accuse you of being a repository of useless information? (Mine do.) Here's your chance to test your knowledge of obscure but interesting tidbits...

1. Mt. St. Helens, the Alaskan stratovolcano that famously erupted in 1980,
   was named for which person?
   
   
   
   1. Helena of Constantinople
   
   
   2. Helena of Skövde
   
   
   3. Alleyne FitzHerbert
   
   
   4. Helen of Troy
   
   



2. Which of the following is not the title of a book by Lillian Jackson Braun?
   
   
   
   1. The Cat Who Wasn't There
   
   
   2. The Cat Who Ran Amuck
   
   
   3. The Cat Who Sniffed Glue
   
   
   4. The Cat Who Turned On and Off



3. It seems all the cool kids these days are using SATA hard drives instead of the old IDE kind.
   SATA stands for Serial ATA, and the old kind are sometimes now called PATA for Parallel ATA,
   but what does the ATA part stand for?
   
   
   
   1. Asyncronous Tandem Attachment
   
   
   2. Asynchronous Throughput Attachment
   
   
   3. Advanced Technology Attachment
   
   
   4. Adaptive Terminal Attachment



4. In the standard model of sub-atomic physics, which of the following is not considered to be a lepton?
   
   
   
   1. photon
   
   
   2. electron
   
   
   3. muon
   
   
   4. tau neutrino



5. 2^nd Timothy chapter 3 gives a list of character traits people will have in the last days. Which of the following is not on the list?
   
   
   
   1. disobedient to their parents
   
   
   2. stingy
   
   
   3. ungrateful
   
   
   4. lovers of pleasure
   
   (Wording taken from the NIV translation.)

I'll post the answers in the comments at some point.

If you have questions to contribute to future quizzes, send them in to jonadab@NO SPAM THANKS ANYWAYbright.net with the phrase Esoteric Knowledge Quiz in the subject line (or. if you are on the Wheeitology list, you can just post them there). Thanks!

Past quizzes: 1, 2, 3

Esoteric Knowledge Quiz #3

Do your friends, family, and coworkers accuse you of being a repository of useless information? (Mine do.) Here's your chance to test your knowledge of obscure tidbits...
I've had some help coming up with the questions for this one, so hopefully they represent a broader spectrum of topics.

1. Which was the first toy to be called an action figure?
   
   
   
   1. Barbie
   
   
   2. Captain Action
   
   
   3. G.I. Joe
   
   
   4. Superman
   Thanks to Mark Harris for sending in this question.



2. Which of the following is not a hardwood tree?
   
   
   
   1. Hickory
   
   
   2. Cedar
   
   
   3. Sycamore
   
   
   4. Balsa



3. The 1985 NFL season will forever be remembered by fans for the historically great Chicago Bears defense, which helped power the team to a convincing 46-10 win over the New England Patriots in Superbowl XX. But what team lead the league in offense that year?
   
   
   
   1. Chicago Bears
   
   
   2. Miami Dolphins
   
   
   3. San Diego Chargers
   
   
   4. San Francisco 49ers
   Thanks to Dave Gable for sending in this question.



4. What is the traditional well-known TCP/IP port number commonly associated with NNTP?
   
   
   
   1. 17
   
   
   2. 70
   
   
   3. 119
   
   
   4. 179
   For an extra bonus geek point, which one is (or was) commonly associated with gopher?



5. If you have desmodromic valves on your vehicle's engine, what is their function?
   
   
   
   1. Opening and closing the intake and exhaust valves without the use of return springs
   
   
   2. Removing air from the crankcase to lower internal air resistance
   
   
   3. Routing exhaust gases through the engine to help it warm up faster
   
   
   4. Allowing gaseous fuel vapors to be burned alongside liquid fuel
   
   For bonus points, which of the following brands of vehicle is most likely to have these valves?
   
   
   
   1. Ducati
   
   
   2. Peugeot
   
   
   3. Kawasaki
   
   
   4. Honda
   Thanks to Andy Kerr for sending in this two-part question.

Most of the answers are in the comments now.

Past Quizzes: 1, 2

Quiz four is already in the works. If you have questions to contribute to future quizzes, send them in to jonadab@NO SPAM THANKS ANYWAYbright.net with the phrase Esoteric Knowledge Quiz in the subject line (or. if you are on the Wheeitology list, you can just post them there). Thanks!

Esoteric Knowledge Quiz #2

Do your friends, family, and coworkers accuse you of being a repository of useless information? (Mine do.) Here's your chance to test your knowledge of obscure but interesting tidbits...

1. What is the major factor usually blamed for Dutch Disease?
   
   
   
   1. too much lowland in too small an area
   
   
   2. too much of a natural resource
   
   
   3. too many seventeen-year cicadas
   
   
   4. too little magnesium in the diet
   
   



2. What does the word farctate mean?
   
   
   
   1. stuffed full
   
   
   2. fluoroastatic acid
   
   
   3. play in an irresponsible manner
   
   
   4. pass gas



3. In Star Trek: The Next Generation, when Dr. Soong puts the emotion chip intended for Data into Lore, the android sings a song. The song that he sings features two major characters, only one of whom is named in the part that Lore sings. What is the name of the other character?
   
   
   
   1. Abu Hasan
   
   
   2. Kassim Baba
   
   
   3. Enkidu
   
   
   4. Ivan Skavinsky Skavar



4. Which of the following islands is currently claimed by Japan, but controlled by another country?
   
   
   
   1. Atlasov
   
   
   2. Iturup
   
   
   3. Wake Island
   
   
   4. Okinawa



5. The following quote is an excerpt from (a translation of) a letter sent to a civil authority. Who wrote it? "In the second place, I was not even examined, let alone asked what my faith was, much less found guilty of any misdeed. Such a procedure, firstly, is counter to the Jewish law, John 7:51, where Nicodemus says: 'Does our law judge a man without first giving him a hearing and learning what he does?' Yes, it is also counter to the Gentile justice, Acts 25:16, where Festus says, '... it was not the custom of the Romans to give up any one before the accused met the accusers face to face, and had opportunity to make defense concerning the charge laid against him.'"
   
   
   
   1. Johann Reuchlin
   
   
   2. Huldrych Zwingli
   
   
   3. Alexander Mack
   
   
   4. Galileo Galilei

The answers have been posted in the comments.

Esoteric Knowledge Quiz #1

Do your friends, family, and coworkers accuse you of being a repository of useless information? (Mine do.) Here's your chance to test your knowledge of obscure but interesting tidbits...

1. In a large glass bowl over medium heat, mix distilled water, gastric acid, and lye, taking care that it doesn't get out of the bowl. Balance the amounts of the acid and the lye so that the pH is precisely neutral, then boil away all the water. What's left?
   1. sodium hydroxide
   2. calcium perchlorate
   3. table salt
   4. sneezing powder


2. What was the name of Julius Caesar's wife?
   
   1. Cornelia
   2. Calpurnia
   3. Pompeia
   4. all of the above


3. The English words dam, dyke, and sluice all come from the same source language. Which language is that?
   1. Old German
   2. Dutch
   3. Greek
   4. Finnish


4. When the priest Hilkiah found a long-lost copy of the book of the law while cleaning the temple, he gave it to a secretary, who read it, then took it to King Josiah and read it to him. What was the secretary's name?
   1. Shaphan son of Azaliah
   2. Joah son of Asaph
   3. Benaiah son of Jehoiada
   4. Shebna


5. For most of the twentieth century, the Poincaire Conjecture was widely considered to be the most important open problem in mathematics. Today it is widely considered solved, due mostly to the work of one man. What is his nationality?
   1. Russian
   2. German
   3. American (of mixed European descent)
   4. Han Chinese

Answers have been posted: see the comments.