Quizology.Online

Tag: birds

  • ROYGBIV — ANSWERS

    Here’s today’s answers.

    Rainbow lorikeet (Trichoglossus moluccanus moluccanus), Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
    Image Wikimedia Commons

    The first question concerns today’s date, 10th July. The others aren’t date-related but connect to the first.

    One

    On 10 July 1985, the flagship of a campaigning organisation sank after explosions caused by two bombs planted by agents of the Directorate General for External Security.  Four questions:

    • What was the name of the ship? 
    • For what campaigning organisation was it the flagship?
    • At a harbour in what city did the sinking occur?
    • What nationality was the organisation which planted the bombs?

    Answers

    • Rainbow Warrior
    • Greenpeace
    • Auckland, New Zealand
    • French

    The sinking of Rainbow Warrior on 10 July 1985, codenamed Opération Satanique, was a French state-terrorism act. The Rainbow Warrior was docked in Auckland prior to sailing to lead planned protests against French nuclear testing at Mururoa Atoll in French Polynesia in the South Pacific. Two French operatives sank the Greenpeace ship in Auckland, killing photographer Fernando Pereira. France initially denied involvement but later apologised, paid reparations, and the agents served two years in French Polynesia.

    Two

    This 1947 musical is set in ‘Missitucky’, U.S. and features a newly arrived Irishman, his daughter and a leprechaun named Og. What is this musical?

    Answer: Finian’s Rainbow.

    Finian’s Rainbow follows Irishman Finian and daughter Sharon in Missitucky (a concoction of Missi-ssippi and Ken-tucky), where he buries a stolen leprechaun’s gold, believing wealth will follow. Leprechaun Og pursues the gold, turning increasingly human. A wish leads to chaos: transforming a bigoted senator, while love blossoms, and moral lessons unfold about dreams, humanity, prejudice, and the folly of greed.

    Three

    Which metallic element derives its name from the Greek goddess of the rainbow?

    Answer: Iridium

    iridium /ɪˈrɪdiəm, ʌɪˈrɪdiəm/ ♫
    ▶ noun [mass noun] (Symbol: Ir) the chemical element of atomic number 77, a hard, dense silvery-white metal.
    Iridium is a member of the transition series and is one of the densest metals. Iridium–platinum alloys are hard and corrosion-resistant and are used in jewellery and for electrical contacts
    – ORIGIN early 19th century: modern Latin, from Latin iris, irid– ‘rainbow’ (so named because it forms compounds of various colours).
    — Oxford English Dictionary 

    Four

    What is the common name for the bird pictured at the top of this post?

    Answer: Rainbow lorikeet.

    Rainbow lorikeets (Trichoglossus moluccanus), a parrot species native to Australia, inhabit rainforests, coastal bush, and woodlands along the eastern seaboard. Rainbow lorikeets are medium-sized parrots with bright, colourful plumage. Males and females are visually indistinguishable, requiring surgical sexing or DNA analysis to determine sex.

    Five

    A ballad by Harold Arlen with lyrics by Yip Harburg was written for a 1939 film where it would be sung by a character whose name in part is ‘Gale’. The song contains a reference to bluebirds. 

    • What is the song?
    • What is the full name of ‘Gale’?
    • What is the film?

    Answers

    • Over the Rainbow
    • Dorothy Gale
    • The Wizard of Oz

    Over the Rainbow, a ballad by Harold Arlen and Yip Harburg, was sung by Judy Garland in The Wizard of Oz (1939). It won an Academy Award, became Garland’s signature song, and was inducted into the National Recording Registry in 2017 for its cultural significance.

    Over the Rainbow

    Somewhere over the rainbow way up high
    There’s a land that I heard of once in a lullaby
    Somewhere over the rainbow skies are blue
    And the dreams that you dare to dream really do come true 

    Someday I’ll wish upon a star
    And wake up where the clouds are far
    Behind me
    Where troubles melt like lemon drops
    Away above the chimney tops
    That’s where you’ll find me 

    Somewhere over the rainbow bluebirds fly
    Birds fly over the rainbow
    Why then, oh, why can’t I? 

    If happy little bluebirds fly
    Beyond the rainbow
    Why, oh, why can’t I?
    — AZ Lyrics

    ROYGBIV

    The mnemonic ROYGBIV helps remember the colours of the rainbow: Richard of York gave battle in vain.

    (mnemonic) A mnemonic phrase to help remember the order of the seven colours of the rainbow: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet.
    Wiktionary

  • ROYGBIV

    See question four. …? (Trichoglossus moluccanus moluccanus), Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
    Image Wikimedia Commons

    The first question concerns today’s date, 10th July. The others aren’t date-related but connect to the first.

    One

    On 10 July 1985, the flagship of a campaigning organisation sank after explosions caused by two bombs planted by agents of the Directorate General for External Security.  Four questions:

    • What was the name of the ship? 
    • For what campaigning organisation was it the flagship?
    • At a harbour in what city did the sinking occur?
    • What nationality was the organisation which planted the bombs?

    Two

    This 1947 musical is set in ‘Missitucky’, U.S. and features a newly arrived Irishman, his daughter and a leprechaun named Og. What is this musical?

    Three

    Which metallic element derives its name from the Greek goddess of the rainbow?

    Four

    What is the common name for the bird pictured at the top of this post?

    Five

    A ballad by Harold Arlen with lyrics by Yip Harburg was written for a 1939 film where it would be sung by a character whose name in part is ‘Gale’. The song contains a reference to bluebirds. 

    • What is the song?
    • What is the full name of ‘Gale’?
    • What is the film?

    Good luck! I’ll post the answers later.

  • I’d Hate to Die on That Dung Heap — Answers

    Here’s today’s answers.

    All of today’s questions are date-specific, relating in one way or another to April 26th.

    One

    Akira Kurosawa‘s 1954 film is set in a village plagued by bandits, and a 1960 American western is a remake of this story.

    1. What was the title of Kurosawa’s 1954 film?
    2. What was the 1960 American film?
    3. What actors played the title characters in the American film?

    Answers

    1. Seven Samurai
    2. The Magnificent Seven
    3. Yul Brynner, Steve McQueen, Horst Buchholz, Charles Bronson, Robert Vaughn, Brad Dexter and James Coburn.

    Seven Samurai, a 1954 Japanese action film by Akira Kurosawa, is hailed as one of the greatest films ever. Set in the 16th century, it depicts a village hiring samurai to fend off bandits, overcoming cultural tensions. Despite being Japan’s longest and costliest film at the time, it achieved global success, elevating Japanese cinema and influencing cinematography. Starring Mifune Toshirō, it inspired The Magnificent Seven.

    Flag of Tanzania.
    Image Wikimedia Commons

    Two

    The country represented by the above flag was founded in 1964.

    1. What is the full, official name of the new country founded?
    2. This new country was formed by the union of a sovereign state with a semi-autonomous region, what were this state and region?

    Answers

    1. United Republic of Tanzania
    2. Tanganyika and Zanzibar.

    Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is an East African nation with a 2024 population of 67.5 million. Formed in 1964 from the Republic of Tanganyika and Zanzibar, it features Mount Kilimanjaro, three Great Lakes, and is a popular safari destination. Swahili is the national language, with Dodoma as its capital.

    Three

    In 1933, Hermann Göring established the Geheime Staatspolizei. What was it commonly known as?

    Answer: Gestapo.

    The Gestapo, Nazi Germany’s secret police, was established in 1933 by Hermann Göring and later controlled by Heinrich Himmler. It targeted political opponents, dissenters, and minorities, committing numerous atrocities. Despite its small size, it was effective due to citizen reporting and played a crucial role in the Holocaust. Post-WWII, it was declared a criminal organisation.

    Four

    American artist and ornithologist James Audubon was born in 1785. In what present day country was he born?

    Answer: Haiti.

    Born in Les Cayes, Saint-Domingue, West Indies, now Haiti, John James Audubon, a French-American artist and ornithologist, is known for his paintings and illustrations of North American bird species. However, he has been accused of fraud and misconduct, such as plagiarising data and trafficking Native American remains.

    Five

    On 26 April 1986, a nuclear disaster occurred in which Soviet Socialist Republic?

    Answer: Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic.

    On 26 April 1986, reactor no. 4 at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, Pripyat, exploded, causing one of the worst nuclear disasters in history. The explosion, due to a design flaw during a test, led to a power surge, steam explosions, and a reactor core fire, spreading radioactive contamination across Europe. Immediate evacuations affected 117,000 people. The disaster resulted in radiation-related fatalities and thousands of cancer cases, with varying death toll predictions. The city of Pripyat was abandoned and replaced by the purpose-built Slavutych. The Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant sarcophagus, completed in December 1986, limited radioactive contamination and protected undamaged reactors’ crews. Between 2016 and 2018, the Chernobyl New Safe Confinement was built around the old sarcophagus to facilitate reactor debris removal. The clean-up is expected to be completed by 2065. It has been described as the most expensive disaster in history costing an estimated US$700 billion.

    I’d Hate to Die on That Dung Heap

    The post title is a quote from the Seven Samurai said by Kikuchiyo, as he and the six Samurai arrive at the village.

  • I’d Hate to Die on That Dung Heap

    All of today’s questions are date-specific, relating in one way or another to April 26th.

    One

    Akira Kurosawa‘s 1954 film is set in a village plagued by bandits, and a 1960 American western is a remake of this story.

    1. What was the title of Kurosawa’s 1954 film?
    2. What was the 1960 American film?
    3. What actors played the title characters in the American film?
    Question two.
    Image Wikimedia Commons

    Two

    The country represented by the above flag was founded in 1964.

    1. What is the full, official name of the new country founded?
    2. This new country was formed by the union of a sovereign state with a semi-autonomous region, what were this state and region?

    Three

    In 1933, Hermann Göring established the Geheime Staatspolizei. What was it commonly known as?

    Four

    American artist and ornithologist James Audubon was born in 1785. In what present day country was he born?

    Five

    On 26 April 1986, a nuclear disaster occurred in which Soviet Socialist Republic?

    Good luck! I’ll post the answers later.