Trivia Quiz?

[phkrause]

18 hours ago, phkrause said:

Who piloted the Spruce Goose on its maiden flight on this day in 1947?

Amelia Earhart Charles Lindbergh Howard Hughes Buzz Aldrin

hahahaha, the only thing I know about 1947 is I was born!! My guess Earhart or Lindbergh!!

 

12 hours ago, Gail said:

Nope and nope! It was Howard Hughes

 

12 hours ago, Gregory Matthews said:

As I  recall  the Spruce Goose was made out of plywood and it could land and take off from water.  Was it only once that it flew?

 

12 hours ago, Gregory Matthews said:

I looked it up. The Spruce Goose flew once, at an altitude of 70 feet above the water and it flew for one mile.

Answer: On November 2, 1947, Howard Hughes piloted his huge wooden airplane, the Spruce Goose, on its only flight, which lasted about a minute over Long Beach Harbor in California. Built with laminated birch and spruce, the massive wooden aircraft had a wingspan longer than a football field and was designed to carry more than 700 men to battle. Completed in 1947, it was flown only once and never went into production. It is currently housed in the Evergreen Aviation Museum in McMinnville, Oregon.

[phkrause]

15 hours ago, phkrause said:

What Is the "Spruce Goose?"

Let's start with the most basic of questions: What is the "Spruce Goose?" Most of us don't really know much about Howard Hughes or the "Spruce Goose" beyond the fact that Martin Scorsese made a film about him that was roughly nine hours long and The Simpsons parodied the guy when Mr. Burns created the "Spruce Moose."

But Hughes was a big movie-producer-turned-pilot-turned-aircraft-developer (as well as the holder of about 900 other similarly impressive job titles), and in the 1940s, the US hired him to build an aircraft that could transport an especially giant load. His team designed the H-4 Hercules (nicknamed the "Spruce Goose") which would be capable of transporting 150,000 pounds of cargo or 750 troops or two M4 Sherman tanks. 

The project took years and millions to complete, but he finally finished in 1946, which history buffs may recognize as after the war was over. The plane took a good amount of ridicule from people who said it would never fly at such a huge size; people who had to eat a bit of crow when Hughes piloted the plane himself on that day in 1947

 

15 hours ago, phkrause said:

What Other Accomplishments Did Howard Hughes Have in the Field of Aviation?

Hughes himself was quite the pilot. Flying Magazine (yes, that's a thing) ranked him 25th on their list of 51 heroes of aviation (if you're curious, Amelia Earhart was 9th on the list, Charles Lindbergh was 3rd and the Wright Brothers were 2nd! Second!! How do the Wright Brothers not get the one slot?!). As they put it, "As a 28-year-old, Hughes started Hughes Aircraft Company and produced the H-1 Racer, arguably one of the most beautiful airplanes ever built. In 1938 Hughes broke the current speed record with the H-1 at 352 mph. He also flew the H-1 from Burbank, California, to New York in 7 hours and 28 seconds, breaking his previous record, set in a Northrop Gamma, by nearly two hours. As a majority shareholder in TWA Airlines, Hughes commissioned the Lockheed 049 Constellation, which became a huge success."

 

15 hours ago, phkrause said:

What Was the Primary Material the "Spruce Goose" Was Made Out Of?

If you guessed that the "Spruce Goose" was made primarily from spruce, you're wrong. The aircraft was built from laminated wood due to wartime restrictions on use of aluminum and weight concerns, but it was mostly birch, not spruce. "Spruce Goose" was a name of ridicule from Hughes' critics and when have critics ever prioritized the facts over a good nickname? The fact of the matter is, the "Birch Goose" doesn't quite roll off the tongue.

 

On 11/2/2016 at 7:37 PM, phkrause said:

What Controversy Did the "Spruce Goose" Cause?

As we pointed out earlier, the plane wasn't finished until after the war was over and it cost a small fortune. Hughes came under fire for his use of government funds to develop an aircraft many speculated couldn't even fly. He was subsequently brought before the Senate War Investigating Committee. To clear his name and vindicate his efforts, Hughes set off for California to fly his plane and prove his detractors wrong. That day, he flew 70 feet off the water and soared through the air for a mile before touching down. It was the only time the "Spruce Goose" would ever fly.

[phkrause]

On 11/2/2016 at 7:37 PM, phkrause said:

Which baseball hero died in a plane crash on his way to deliver relief supplies to earthquake victims?

Jackie Robinson Mickey Mantle Roberto Clemente Sandy Koufax

Roberto Clemente

Answer: Roberto Clemente became the first Latin American player to collect 3,000 career hits before his death in a plane crash. He led the National League in batting four times during the 1960s, and starred in the 1971 World Series. Renowned for his humanitarian work, he died in a plane crash on December 31, 1972, en route to bringing supplies to survivors of an earthquake in Nicaragua. The next year he was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. He became the first Latino inducted into the Hall.

[phkrause]

When you roll a six-sided die, the numbers on opposite sides always add up to which number?

A. Eight
B. Seven
C. Six
D. Zero

[phkrause]

Just now, phkrause said:

When you roll a six-sided die, the numbers on opposite sides always add up to which number?

A. Eight
B. Seven
C. Six
D. Zero

Well I don't have a die in front of me at the moment, but I'll guess its either A or B

[phkrause]

Who did the Chicago Tribune erroneously claim had beaten President Truman to win the presidential election on this day in 1948?

Thomas Dewey Adlai Stevenson Strom Thurmond Alfred M. Landon

[phkrause]

4 Trivia Questions about Animals Who Have Gone to Space

On November 3rd, 1957, the Soviet Union launched the first animal ever into space: a dog named Laika. See how much you know about some other lunar animals with these trivia questions...

What Did JFK Nickname the Puppies Birthed by Pushinka, a Dog from the USSR?

When Scientists Ran Tests Giving the Protein Osteoprotegerin to Mice, They Took Advantage of What Effect That Space Has on Living Species?

In 2007, 3,000 of What Animal Became the First Earth Species to Survive Being in Space?

In 1783, Two French Brothers Made What Three Animals the First to Be Launched Into the Sky Aboard a Man-Made Contraption?

[phkrause]

Which legendary singer was known as the "Hardest Working Man in Show Business"?

Tony Bennett Ray Charles James Brown Johnny Cash

"was" makes me believe it has to be Ray, James or Johnny

[Gail]

5 hours ago, phkrause said:

When you roll a six-sided die, the numbers on opposite sides always add up to which number?

A. Eight
B. Seven
C. Six
D. Zero

It's seven. The one and six are opposite each other, the two and five and the three and four.

[phkrause]

14 hours ago, phkrause said:

When you roll a six-sided die, the numbers on opposite sides always add up to which number?

A. Eight
B. Seven
C. Six
D. Zero

 

9 hours ago, Gail said:

It's seven. The one and six are opposite each other, the two and five and the three and four.

B. Seven

Did you roll the dice and guess seven? A traditional six-sided die when rolled will always add up to seven for each pair of opposite sides.

Source: various web sites.

[phkrause]

14 hours ago, phkrause said:

Who did the Chicago Tribune erroneously claim had beaten President Truman to win the presidential election on this day in 1948?

Thomas Dewey Adlai Stevenson Strom Thurmond Alfred M. Landon

Answer: Perhaps the most famous incorrect banner headline in history is “Dewey Defeats Truman” which was published on the front page of the Chicago Tribune on November 3, 1948, the day after incumbent President Harry Truman won an upset victory over the Republican Governor of New York, Thomas E. Dewey, in the presidential election. In one of history's most iconic photographs, Truman can be seen holding the famous issue of the newspaper soon after winning the election.

[phkrause]

13 hours ago, phkrause said:

What Did JFK Nickname the Puppies Birthed by Pushinka, a Dog from the USSR?

Laika was hardly the only dog the Soviets sent into space. In 1960, they sent Belka and Strelka who became the first animals to actually survive a trip into space. Soviet premier Nikita Krushchev gave one of the puppies Strelka had the following year to John F. Kennedy's daughter Caroline as a gesture of goodwill. When that puppy (Pushinka) had her own kids with the Kennedys' Welsh terrier, JFK called them "pupniks."

 

13 hours ago, phkrause said:

When Scientists Ran Tests Giving the Protein Osteoprotegerin to Mice, They Took Advantage of What Effect That Space Has on Living Species?

You know how the human race is obsessed with running tests on lab mice? Well, we also like to do it in space. In fact, being in space has one particular effect that makes experiments there extra valuable: It accelerates the aging process. So, for example, if you want to test drugs that treat osteoporosis, you don't have to wait as long to see results. One study taking advantage of this was when mice were given a protein called osteoprotegerin. The experiment showed strong signs the protein might help prevent osteoporosis and other bone diseases.

 

13 hours ago, phkrause said:

In 2007, 3,000 of What Animal Became the First Earth Species to Survive Being in Space?

Virtually every earth species wouldn't make it long in outer space without one of those fancy space suits. But there is at least one exception: an animal called a water bear (also known as tardigrades), which is all but indestructible here on Earth. They can survive under intense pressure and withstand huge amounts of radiation, which is exactly what you need to do if you want to make it in space.

In 2007, two species of water bears were launched into space. They came back after 10 days unaffected by the merciless vacuum of space and depleted-but-not-killed by the intense amounts of ultraviolet radiation from the sun. Then a bunch of them had children. Said developmental biologist Bob Goldstein, "No animal has survived open space before ... The finding that animals survived rehydration after 10 days in open space - and then produced viable embryos as well - is really remarkable."

 

13 hours ago, phkrause said:

In 1783, Two French Brothers Made What Three Animals the First to Be Launched Into the Sky Aboard a Man-Made Contraption?

Okay, this last question isn't about space, but it's about the first ever experiment sending animals airborne aboard a human-made device, so we figured that had to count for something. It was 1783 when a pair of French brothers beat the Wright Brothers by a good 120 years in putting a species in a flying machine: the hot air balloon. That's right, just like we were hesitant to make the first creature in space a human, we were just as nervous about sending people into the sky. So they ran an experiment, sending out a duck, a rooster, and a sheep first. The three survived and mankind has been trying to fly higher and higher ever since.

[phkrause]

13 hours ago, phkrause said:

Which legendary singer was known as the "Hardest Working Man in Show Business"?

Tony Bennett Ray Charles James Brown Johnny Cash

"was" makes me believe it has to be Ray, James or Johnny

My guess is James Brown, because from all these guys I remember him really working out on stage much more than the others!!

Answer: The Godfather of Soul, the inventor of funk, and the grandfather of hip-hop, James Brown had many titles in life yet none truly do justice to his monumental impact on music. Brown performed five or six nights a week throughout the 1950s and '60s, a schedule that earned him the title "The Hardest-Working Man in Show Business." Brown would routinely lose two or three pounds each time he performed and kept his furious concert schedule in his later years even as he fought prostate cancer.

[phkrause]

Which member of One Direction recently left the band?

A. Niall Horan
B. Harry Styles
C. Louis Tomlinson
D. Zayn Malik

[phkrause]

Which ballpark has served as home to the 2016 World Series Champion Chicago Cubs since 1916?

Fenway Park Wrigley Field Camden Yards Shea Stadium

Wrigley Field

[phkrause]

How many miles is a 10K race?

4.4 miles 5.3 miles 6.2 miles 7.4 miles

[phkrause]

4 Trivia Questions about The Iranian Hostage Crisis

On November 4th, 1979, the Iranian hostage crisis began as militants stormed the U.S. Embassy in Tehran. Try these trivia questions to see how much you know about what unfolded next as 52 American hostages were held for the next 444 days...

Why Did Antonio Mendez Call His Fake Movie That He Used to Save Six Americans "Argo?"

What Was the Name of the Failed Rescue Attempt of the 52 Hostages?

Major League Baseball Gave the 52 American Hostages What Gift?

Iran Waited Until When to Allow the Freed Hostages' Plane to Take Off Headed for America?

[Gail]

51 minutes ago, phkrause said:

How many miles is a 10K race?

4.4 miles 5.3 miles 6.2 miles 7.4 miles

 

6.2

[phkrause]

On 11/4/2016 at 0:17 PM, phkrause said:

Which member of One Direction recently left the band?

A. Niall Horan
B. Harry Styles
C. Louis Tomlinson
D. Zayn Malik

I personally have no clue!!

D. Zayn Malik

Much to the chagrin of tweens everywhere, Zayn Malik decided to go in another direction in 2015.

Source: various web sites.

[phkrause]

On 11/4/2016 at 0:22 PM, phkrause said:

Which ballpark has served as home to the 2016 World Series Champion Chicago Cubs since 1916?

Fenway Park Wrigley Field Camden Yards Shea Stadium

Wrigley Field

Answer: Wrigley Field is a baseball park located on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois. It is the home of the 2016 World Series winning Chicago Cubs. The Cubs played their first home game there in 1916 on April 20, defeating the Cincinnati Reds. Chewing gum magnate William Wrigley Jr. acquired complete control of the Cubs by 1921. Wrigley Field is known for its ivy-covered brick outfield wall, the iconic red marquee over the main entrance, the hand-turned scoreboard, and for being the last major league park to have lights installed for play after dark, in 1988.

[phkrause]

18 hours ago, phkrause said:

Why Did Antonio Mendez Call His Fake Movie That He Used to Save Six Americans "Argo?"

You've likely seen or at least heard of Argo, the Ben Affleck movie based on the true story of CIA operative Antonio Mendez who saved six Americans who had evaded capture during the embassy attack and found refuge with Canadian diplomats. His plan involved pretending he and the six hideaways were part of a film crew, and that required taking the steps any genuine crew would. They had to set up an actual studio in case anyone called, and they needed an actual script to "shoot." They found the latter in an adaptation of the science fiction novel Lord of the Light.

Said Mendez, "I was thinking that, for operational purposes, the more confusing the better. If someone were to stop us, then it would be easy for us to overwhelm them with confusing conceptual jargon." According to Mendez, his partner suggested calling it Argo. "It was the name of the ship that Jason and the Argonauts sailed in to liberate the Golden Fleece against impossible odds." Seems fitting.

 

18 hours ago, phkrause said:

What Was the Name of the Failed Rescue Attempt of the 52 Hostages?

Meanwhile, here's a rescue attempt that didn't go so smoothly. It was called Operation Eagle Claw and involved eight helicopters flying from checkpoint to checkpoint before finally landing 50 miles south of Tehran and sending in CIA operatives to storm the embassy. The hostages would then be taken by helicopters to more helicopters and eventually freedom. In other words, it only involved about eighteen steps. And things went wrong on the first one.

Weather and technology problems knocked out three helicopters, and the mission was aborted. When another crashed during the evacuation, the helicopters were abandoned. The end result: an embarrassing failure for the United States and Iran gaining a few new helicopters, some of which they still use to this day.

 

18 hours ago, phkrause said:

Major League Baseball Gave the 52 American Hostages What Gift?

Back in 1907, Major League Baseball gave President Theodore Roosevelt the first ever MLB lifetime pass. A ticket that grants its holder free admission to any Major League Baseball stadium of their choice. Roosevelt never used his, but plenty of other recipients of the pass have over the years and it became a fun item to give away to major figures.

Slowly, the pass also became something that was occasionally given to victims of some sort of major incident, first with the crew members of the USS Pueblo, a Naval ship seized by North Korea whose 82 crew members were imprisoned and tortured for almost a year. Those 52 hostages also received one of these lifetime passes.

 

18 hours ago, phkrause said:

Iran Waited Until When to Allow the Freed Hostages' Plane to Take Off Headed for America?

The United States and Iran finally reached an agreement to bring the captives back in December of 1980. Then Iran held the hostages there even longer. They waited all the way until when Ronald Reagan was sworn in as president before letting the plane carrying the hostages take off for America. It's no secret that Iran hated President Jimmy Carter, and this was seen as sort of one final slap in the face of Carter before he left office.

This timing even once prompted an investigation into whether Reagan and Iran had reached some sort of backroom deal before the election. After all, the crisis did plenty to wreck Carter's reelection hopes. That investigation found no evidence of any such deal, but it's still a conspiracy theory that's out there.

[phkrause]

19 hours ago, phkrause said:

How many miles is a 10K race?

4.4 miles 5.3 miles 6.2 miles 7.4 miles

 

18 hours ago, Gail said:

6.2

Answer: One kilometer converts to .62 miles. Therefore, a 10K race is the equivalent of 6.2 miles. The kilometer is the primary measurement unit for expressing large distances throughout most of the world, though the United States still uses the mile as its standard. The popularity of 10K races lies in the fact that, for most adults, the 10K distance is long enough to represent a challenge but short enough to remain accessible for an untrained runner. For a real world comparison, you would have to run a football field (including the end zone) 91.14 times to complete a 10K.

[phkrause]

Which organization kidnapped heiress Patty Hearst in 1974?

A. Palestinian Liberation Army
B. Black Panther Party
C. Symbionese Liberation Army
D. Al Qaeda

 

C

[phkrause]

Who hosted the popular game show "Deal or No Deal"?

Regis Philbin Howie Mandel Ben Stein William Shatner

Ben Stein is my guess

[phkrause]

Trivia Questions about Crusader Susan B. Anthony

On November 5th, 1872, suffragist Susan B. Anthony was fined $100 for attempting to vote in a presidential election. Everything she did next was straight up awesome. See how much you know about it all with some trivia questions...

When Confronted by a Police Officer, What Did Susan B. Anthony Demand of Him?

Why Did They Have to Move Anthony's Trial?

What Did the Judge Instruct the Jury to Do with Anthony's Case?

Did Anthony Ever Pay That $100 Fine?