See question two. Robinson Crusoe. Image Goodreads
Five questions which follow are not date related but do follow a theme.
One
The 2010 autobiography of whom is titled 9.58?
Two
The location of the uninhabited island where Robinson Crusoe was shipwrecked is described as being ‘near the mouth of the great river …’— what river mouth?
Three
Historically known as Alexandretta, this city featured in a 1984 film starring Sean Connery. What was the film, and by what name is the city now known?
Four
Which song begins:
Risin’ up, back on the street Did my time, took my chances
Five
Who played the title role in the 1973 film Serpico?
James Irwin with the Lunar Roving Vehicle on the Moon. Mons Hadley is in the background. Image NASA/David Scott via Wikimedia Commons
One to five as usual today, but you need to find ten answers. The first question is related to today’s date, 31 July, while the subsequent ones follow on from the theme created by the first.
One
On this day in 1971, Apollo 15’s astronauts first used the Lunar Roving Vehicle, which is also colloquially known as a Moon Buggy, on the Lunar surface. By the end of the Apollo program how many of these vehicles were left behind on the Moon?
Answer: Three.
The Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV), built by Boeing Co., enabled extended travel, speed, and greater scientific activity on the Moon during the Apollo era. The first surface mission to use the LRV, Apollo 15 astronauts covered a total 17.5 miles of exploration and discovery. The historic Apollo Program sent the first U.S. astronauts into orbit around the Moon in 1968 and landed a dozen astronauts on the lunar surface between 1969 and 1972. The reach of initial Apollo surface missions was restricted to short walking distances. During each of the last three Apollo missions, between 1971 and 1972, a battery powered LRV provided transportation for two crew members and supplies several miles beyond the landing site. — NASA
Two
Set on the Moon in 1996, a short story first published in 1951 describes the discovery of a mysterious pyramid which had been placed by aliens several billion years previously. This story has an influential role in the development of a 1968 film. Three questions:
What is the story’s title?
Who was its author?
What was the title of the 1968 film?
Answers
The Sentinal
Arthur C. Clarke
2001: A Space Odyssey
The Sentinel (1951) by Arthur C. Clarke, set in 1996, follows selenologist Wilson discovering a mysterious alien structure on the Moon. After breaching its shield with atomic energy, the structure is destroyed, revealing advanced technology. Wilson theorises it was a sentinel alerting aliens to the emergence of intelligent life.
Three
The Huygens lander was the first man made object to land on a world in the outer Solar System. Where did it land?
Answer: Titan.
The Cassini–Huygens mission, a collaboration between NASA, ESA, and ASI, aimed to study Saturn and its system. It included NASA’s Cassini probe and ESA’s Huygens lander. Launched in 1997, Cassini orbited Saturn from 2004 to 2017, providing extensive data on the planet and Huygens landed on Titan. The mission included flybys of Venus, Earth, asteroid 2685 Masursky, and Jupiter, ending on September 15, 2017, by burning up in Saturn’s atmosphere to prevent contamination. It was a ‘mission of firsts’, revolutionising understanding of Saturn’s system and potential life-supporting environments in the Solar System and landing on on a world in the outer Solar System the first time.
Four
In ancient Greek mythology who was the goddess and personification of the Moon who drives her Moon chariot across the heavens?
Answer: Salene.
The air, unlit before, glows with the light of her golden crown, and her rays beam clear, whensoever bright Selene having bathed her lovely body in the waters of Ocean, and donned her far-gleaming raiment, and yoked her strong-necked, shining team, drives on her long-maned horses at full speed, at eventime in the mid-month: then her great orbit is full and then her beams shine brightest as she increases. So she is a sure token and a sign to mortal men. — Homeric Hymn to SaleneWikipedia
Five
Moon River featured in a 1961 film and won the Academy Award for Best Original Song. Four questions:
Who composed the song?
Who wrote the lyrics?
What was the 1961 film?
Who sang it in the film?
Answers
Henry Mancini
Johnny Mercer
Breakfast at Tiffany’s
Audrey Hepburn
Moon River, composed by Henry Mancini with lyrics by Johnny Mercer, was performed by Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961), winning an Academy Award and two Grammys. The song relaunched Mercer’s songwriting career, stalled by rock and roll’s rise. The lyrics reflect Mercer’s Southern youth and wanderlust and an inlet near Savannah, Georgia, was named Moon River in his honour. Andy Williams made it his theme song, recording it in 1962 and in 2022, his version was preserved in the U.S. Library of Congress.
James Irwin with the Lunar Roving Vehicle on the Moon. Mons Hadley is in the background. Image NASA/David Scott via Wikimedia Commons
One to five as usual today, but you need to find ten answers. The first question is related to today’s date, 31 July, while the subsequent ones follow on from the theme created by the first.
One
On this day in 1971, Apollo 15’s astronauts first used the Lunar Roving Vehicle, which is also colloquially known as a Moon Buggy, on the Lunar surface. By the end of the Apollo program how many of these vehicles were left behind on the Moon?
Two
Set on the Moon in 1996, a short story first published in 1951 describes the discovery of a mysterious pyramid which had been placed by aliens several billion years previously. This story has an influential role in the development of a 1968 film. Three questions:
What is the story’s title?
Who was its author?
What was the title of the 1968 film?
Three
The Huygens lander was the first man made object to land on a world in the outer Solar System. Where did it land?
Four
In ancient Greek mythology who was the goddess and personification of the Moon who drives her Moon chariot across the heavens?
Five
Moon River featured in a 1961 film and won the Academy Award for Best Original Song. Four questions:
George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-four. Image Pinterest
Today’s questions are not related to the date; instead, they share a theme linked to the title in a subtle or hidden manner.
One
ZZ9 Plural Z Alpha, an appreciation society and their publication Mostly Harmless is connected to what science fiction franchise?
Answer: The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy.
ZZ9 Plural Z Alpha organises gatherings and social events, produces the magazine Mostly Harmless and sells Beeblebears modelled on Zaphod Beeblebrox. It celebrates The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and Douglas Adams’s works.
Two
What single word can mean nought, a strong-lined fabric, a quick immersion, a bivalve mollusc, a lowering of the head or a bird and in which sport did the meaning ‘nought’ originate?
Answer: Duck: cricket.
All of the above are from definitions of duck.
Nought: in cricket a batter’s score of zero. Origin mid 19th century: short for duck’s egg, used for the figure 0 because of its similar outline.
Fabric: a strong cotton or linen fabric. Origin mid 17th century: from Middle Dutch doek ‘linen, linen cloth’; related to German Tuch ‘cloth’.
Immersion: to dip under water. Origin Middle English: of Germanic origin; related to Dutch duiken and German tauchen ‘dive, dip, plunge’.
Mollusc: a pure white thin-shelled bivalve mollusc found off the Atlantic coasts of America. Genus Anatina, family Mactridae.
Lowering head: lower the head or the body quickly. Origin Middle English: of Germanic origin; related to Dutch duiken and German tauchen ‘dive, dip, plunge’.
Bird: a waterbird with a broad blunt bill. Origin Old English duce, from the Germanic German tauchen ‘dive, dip, plunge’.
Three
Where is the mythical Snow Lion a celestial emblem?
Answer: Tibet.
The Snow Lion, Tibet’s celestial emblem, symbolises power, strength, fearlessness, joy, east, and earth. Featured on Tibet’s flag from 1916 to 1950, it remains used by the Tibetan Government-in-Exile. Depicted as white with a turquoise mane, it represents hermits and yogis, and is prominent in Tibetan culture.
Four
What character is named when symbols for sulphur, nobelium, oxygen, phosphorus and yttrium are placed together in order?
What are the three super-states in the novel Nineteen Eighty-four, and in which of these is London located?
Answers: Oceania, Eurasia and Eastasia; Oceania.
In April 1984, Winston Smith lives in Airstrip One (previously Great Britain), a province of Oceania, under totalitarian rule by ‘the Party’ and Big Brother. The Party enforces conformity through surveillance and Thought Police, erasing dissenters as “unpersons”. Winston, an Outer Party member at the Ministry of Truth, secretly rebels against the regime.
42-0-20-(Z 16-102–8-15-39)-13
The numbers in the title offer clues, perhaps obscure, to each of the questions in the correct order. The information breaks down like this
42: In The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy 42 is the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe, and everything.
0: A duck is 0 as explained above, see ‘Nought’ under the second answer.
20: The 20th letter of the alphabet ‘T’ is the initial to this answer.
(Z 16-102–8-15-39): Z is the symbol for atomic numbers and 16 is the atomic number for sulphur, 102 is nobelium 8 is oxygen 15 is phosphorus and 39 is yttrium each of which make Snoopy.
13: : ‘It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen.’ Thirteen concludes the opening line of George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-four.
George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-four. Image Pinterest
Today’s questions are not related to the date; instead, they share a theme linked to the title in a subtle or hidden manner.
One
ZZ9 Plural Z Alpha, an appreciation society and their publication Mostly Harmless is connected to what science fiction franchise?
Two
What single word can mean nought, a strong-lined fabric, a quick immersion, a bivalve mollusc, a lowering of the head or a bird and in which sport did the meaning ‘nought’ originate?
Three
Where is the mythical Snow Lion a celestial emblem?
Four
What character is named when symbols for sulphur, nobelium, oxygen, phosphorus and yttrium are placed together in order?
Five
What are the three super-states in the novel Nineteen Eighty-four, and in which of these is London located?
The first question is connected to today, 29 July. The remainder are not date-related but continue a theme leading you on a quest through the fantasy worlds of fiction.
One
In 1954, the first volume of J.R.R. Tolkien’s epic The Lord of the Rings was published. What was the title of this volume?
Answer: The Fellowship of the Ring.
In 1954, J.R.R. Tolkien published The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers, the first parts of The Lord of the Rings, followed by The Return of the King in 1955. The Fellowship of the Ring refers to the company made up by Frodo, Merry, Sam and Pippin: all Hobbits; Aragorn and Boromir: both men; Legolas, an Elf; Gimli, a Dwarf; and Gandalf, a Wizard.
Two
What author’s work is home to the battle poet William the Gonnagle?
Answer: Terry Pratchett.
In Pratchett’s Discworld series, William the Gonnagle, a 96-year-old battle poet and musician, speaks in the lowland Scots of Robert Burns and with a slow careful voice. He plays mouse pipes that drive Grimhounds mad. Unlike bards, gonnagles compose poems to frighten enemies during battles causing their ears to explode. His name is derived from the notoriously poor poet William Topaz McGonagall.
Three
What series of books, the first published in 1995, included the character Fra Pavel Rašek, an alethiometrist of the Consistorial Court of Discipline (CCD), and of what organisation is the CCD a branch?
Answers: His Dark Materials; Magisterium.
Philip Pullman’s trilogy unfolds across a multiverse, with Northern Lights set in a world akin to Edwardian Britain, featuring zeppelins instead of cars or planes. The Church, led by the Magisterium, mirrors the Catholic Church’s authority, with the CCD as one of its most active branches.
Four
Who were Paul and Alia’s parents in the novel Dune?
Answer: Lord Leto Atreides and Lady Jessica
Dune, a 1965 novel by Frank Herbert, is set in a feudal interstellar society where noble houses vie for control of Arrakis, the sole source of the valuable spice melange. The story follows Paul Atreides as he navigates politics, religion, and ecology in this epic science fiction tale.
Five
In the world of Harry Potter, the Killing Curse (Avada Kedavra), the Cruciatus Curse (Crucio), and the Imperius Curse (Imperio) are known collectively as what?
Answer: Unforgivable Curses.
The Unforgivable Curses, Avada Kedavra, Crucio, and Imperio, are the most powerful and sinister Dark spells in the wizarding world. First classified as ‘Unforgivable’ in 1717, they carry the strictest penalties for their use, being tools of the Dark Arts.
Enchanted Forest
The title refers to a common feature in fiction: an enchanted forest.
The first question is connected to today, 29 July. The remainder are not date-related but continue a theme leading you on a quest through the fantasy worlds of fiction.
One
In 1954, the first volume of J.R.R. Tolkien’s epic The Lord of the Rings was published. What was the title of this volume?
Two
What author’s work is home to the battle poet William the Gonnagle?
Three
What series of books, the first published in 1995, included the character Fra Pavel Rašek, an alethiometrist of the Consistorial Court of Discipline (CCD), and of what organisation is the CCD a branch?
Four
Who were Paul and Alia’s parents in the novel Dune?
Five
In the world of Harry Potter, the Killing Curse (Avada Kedavra), the Cruciatus Curse (Crucio), and the Imperius Curse (Imperio) are known collectively as what?
These are not date-related but there is a theme at the End of the Line.
One
What word means “an explanation of the history of a particular word”?
Answer: Etymology.
Etymology is the study of word origins and evolution, tracing their sounds and meanings across time. Etymologists use historical texts and comparative linguistics to reconstruct word histories and trace their roots to shared parent languages.
Two
This Skoda compact SUV, named after a cryptozoological creature, was superseded by both the Karoq and the Kamiq?
Answer: Yeti.
The Škoda Yeti, a compact crossover SUV, debuted in 2009 and won Top Gear Magazine’s Family Car of the Year.
Three
The Kabul River originates in the Hindu Kush mountains and flows 700 kilometres to empty into the … What is the watery destination missing from the end of the above statement?
Answer: Indus.
The Kabul River, originating in Afghanistan’s Hindu Kush mountains, flows 435 miles (700 km) to join the Indus in Pakistan. The Indus, a significant waterway in Asia, originates in Tibet and flows through disputed Kashmir, Pakistan, and empties into the Arabian Sea. Spanning 1,976 miles (3,180 km), it supports diverse ecosystems and has a rich historical significance, including the rise of the Indus Valley Civilisation. The river’s course is shaped by geological formations, including the Indus-Yarlung suture zone.
Four
This fictional Great Dane first graced our screens in 1969 and continues to be a beloved figure on television and in both live-action and animated films. Who is this remarkable dog?
Answer: Scooby-Doo.
Scooby-Doo is an American media franchise created in 1969, featuring four teenagers and their talking Great Dane solving mysteries. The franchise includes numerous shows, films, and specials, with the most recent series, Scooby-Doo and Guess Who?, premiering in 2019.
Five
Peter Cullen, Tesshō Genda and others have voiced which character from a media franchise that started with toys in the 1980s and has since spawned at least a dozen films?
Answer: Optimus Prime.
Transformers is a highly successful media franchise centred around the Autobots and Decepticons, two alien robot factions. The franchise, which began in 1984, includes toys, animation, comics, video games, and films, generating over ¥2 trillion in revenue. Ownership is split between Hasbro and Takara Tomy.
End of Line
The last letter at the ‘End of the Line’ of the first answer is the initial letter of the next answer and so on. This includes the final answer’s ‘E’ from Prime which starts the first answer, Etymology.
These are not date-related but there is a theme at the End of the Line.
One
What word means “an explanation of the history of a particular word”?
Two
This Skoda compact SUV, named after a cryptozoological creature, was superseded by both the Karoq and the Kamiq?
Three
The Kabul River originates in the Hindu Kush mountains and flows 700 kilometres to empty into the … What is the watery destination missing from the end of the above statement?
Four
This fictional Great Dane first graced our screens in 1969 and continues to be a beloved figure on television and in both live-action and animated films. Who is this remarkable dog?
Five
Peter Cullen, Tesshō Genda and others have voiced which character from a media franchise that started with toys in the 1980s and has since spawned at least a dozen films?
Tomb of the unknown Soldier under the Arc de Triomphe de l’Étoile, Paris. Image Wikimedia Commons
Today’s questions are not date-related. Hopefully, you’ll be saying ‘aargh’ before it is finished.
One
An eternal flame burns in Paris to honour unidentified casualties from both world wars. Where is it located?
Answer: Arc de Triomphe de l’Étoile (aka Arc de Triomphe).
Beneath the Arc lies the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from World War I. Buried on Armistice Day 1920, an eternal flame honours the unidentified dead (now from both world wars). In 1961, U.S. President John F. Kennedy and First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy honoured the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier alongside President Charles de Gaulle. Following the 1963 assassination of President Kennedy, Mrs. Kennedy recalled the eternal flame at the Arc de Triomphe and asked for a similar flame beside her husband’s grave at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.
Two
Jesus and the Apostles are believed to have spoken … — Encyclopædia Britannica
What language completes the above sentence from Encyclopædia Britannica?
Answer: Aramaic.
Aramaic, a Semitic language linked to Hebrew, Syriac and Phoenician, spread from the Aramaeans via Assyrians and Babylonians, becoming the Achaemenian official language before Greek replaced it. It replaced Hebrew among Jews, appears in Daniel, Ezra and the Talmuds, was spoken by Jesus and the Apostles, and lasted until Arabic displaced it around 650 CE.
Three
A US group released Blitzkrieg Bop as their first single in 1976, while Baby, I Love You became their most successful UK track. What is the band’s name?
Answer: Ramones.
Released in February 1976, Blitzkrieg Bop is the Ramones’ debut single and opening track on their first album. Written by Tommy and Dee Dee Ramone, its chant became a global rallying cry. Baby, I Love You was first recorded by the Ronettes in 1963. Phil Spector produced the Ramones cover version of the song which appeared on their album, End of the Century (1980). The single reached number eight in the UK Singles Chart in 1980, their biggest UK top-ten hit.
Four
What 1992 film starring Al Pacino and Jack Lemmon depicts two days in the lives of four real-estate salesmen?
Answer: Glengarry Glen Ross.
Directed by James Foley and written by David Mamet, Glengarry Glen Ross follows four salesmen facing dismissal threats from Blake. Critically acclaimed, Jack Lemmon won the Volpi Cup and Al Pacino received award nominations, but the film grossed $10.7 million against a $12.5 million budget.
Five
Before the 1947 partition created India and Pakistan, what historic Persian-derived name was commonly used for the Indian subcontinent—especially its northern regions—and is still sometimes used as a poetic or cultural name for India today?
Answer: Hindustan.
The name Hindustan comes from the Persian word Hind (India) combined with the suffix -stan, meaning “land.” Although it once referred broadly to much of northern India or the Indian subcontinent, today it is mainly used in historical, literary, and cultural contexts rather than as India’s official name.
Aargh
The post title is an exclamation ‘used as an expression of anguish, horror, rage, or other strong emotion, often with humorous intent’. It is used here to provide the initial letters of the answers
