Quizology.Online

Tag: literature

  • First — Answers

    Here are the answers to today’s questions.

    See question four. Popeye.
    Image Wikimedia Commons

    There is no theme with these questions but the five answers are linked to something written in this post prior to the questions.

    One

    What is American novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald’s first name?

    Answer: Francis.

    Francis Scott Fitzgerald, an American novelist, essayist, and short story writer, is best known for his novels depicting the Jazz Age. He achieved transient success in the 1920s and is now regarded as one of the greatest American writers of the 20th century.

    Two

    What title was shared by both of these: a 1966 single by Cream from their album Fresh Cream, and a 1988 track from Belinda Carlisle’s album, Heaven on Earth?

    Answer: I Feel Free.

    I Feel Free by Cream, released in 1966, blends blues rock and psychedelic pop. It reached number 11 on the UK singles chart and was the band’s debut single in the US. In 1987, American singer Belinda Carlisle recorded a cover of the song for her second studio album Heaven on Earth.

    Three

    John Updike’s 1960 novel was the first in a series of books with titles which included the nickname of the main character. What was the title of that 1960 novel?

    Answer: Rabbit, Run.

    Rabbit, Run, a 1960 novel by John Updike, follows Harry ’Rabbit’ Angstrom, a former basketball player trapped in a loveless marriage and a boring job. The novel spawned several sequels and a novella, exploring Rabbit’s life against the backdrop of major events in the latter half of the 20th century.

    Four

    This character is normally known by a nickname but Popeye named them in 1933 as ‘Schooner Seawell Georgia Washenting Christiffer Columbia Daniel Boom’. What is the nickname?

    Answer: Swee’Pea.

    Swee’Pea, a character in E.C. Segar’s comic strip Thimble Theatre/Popeye, is named after the sweet pea flower. He debuted in 1933 and, despite ageing, remained a crawling baby who could speak and fight.

    Five

    In what sport are these the major prizes at the world championships. Swaythling Cup (men’s team), Corbillon Cup (women’s team), St. Bride’s Vase (men’s singles) and Geist Prize (women’s singles)?

    Answer: Table tennis.

    These world championship prizes are described by Wikipedia as 

    • Team competition:
      • Swaythling Cup for men’s team, donated in 1926 by Gladys, Baroness Swaythling, mother of the first ITTF president, Ivor Montagu. 
      • Corbillon Cup for women’s team, donated in 1933 by Marcel Corbillon, president of the French Table Tennis Association. The original Cup was won by German team in 1939, and disappeared during Berlin occupation after World War II; the current Corbillon Cup is a replica made in 1949.
    • Singles competition:
      • St. Bride Vase for men’s singles, donated in 1929 by C.Corti Woodcock, member of the exclusive St. Bride Table Tennis Club in London, after Fred Perry of England won the title in Budapest.
      • Geist Prize for women’s singles, donated in 1931 by Dr. Gaspar Geist, president of the Hungarian Table Tennis Association for women’s singles, donated in 1931 by Dr. Gaspar Geist, president of the Hungarian Table Tennis Association.

    First

    The post title provided the first letter of each of the answers. The reason for the title ‘First’ was a personal one: today marks the anniversary of me starting out in my chosen career — 15 June 1970 — long before I entered the trivia world that has provided a second career.

  • First

    See question four. Popeye.
    Image Wikimedia Commons

    There is no theme with these questions but the five answers are linked to something written in this post prior to the questions.

    One

    What is American novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald’s first name?

    Two

    What title was shared by both of these: a 1966 single by Cream from their album Fresh Cream, and a 1988 track from Belinda Carlisle’s album, Heaven on Earth?

    Three

    John Updike’s 1960 novel was the first in a series of books with titles which included the nickname of the main character. What was the title of that 1960 novel?

    Four

    This character is normally known by a nickname but Popeye named them in 1933 as ‘Schooner Seawell Georgia Washenting Christiffer Columbia Daniel Boom’. What is the nickname?

    Five

    In what sport are these the major prizes at the world championships. Swaythling Cup (men’s team), Corbillon Cup (women’s team), St. Bride’s Vase (men’s singles) and Geist Prize (women’s singles)?

    Good luck! I’ll post the answers later.

  • Animal Crackers — Answers

    Here are the answers to today’s questions.

    Coat of Arms of Australia.
    Image Wikimedia Commons

    All of todays questions are about animals.

    One

    What birds are shown on the Australian coat of arms?

    Answer: Emu, (Australian piping) shrike and black swan.

    The shield’s centre features symbols representing Australia’s six states and its border symbolises federation. Holding the shield are the native Australian animals, the kangaroo and the emu. These were chosen to represent a nation moving forward as neither animal easily moves backwards. Above the shield sits a seven-point gold Commonwealth Star. Six of the star’s points represent the Australian states while the seventh point represents the territories. South Australia is represented by an Australian piping shrike and Western Australia, a black swan.

    Two

    A xylophage is an animal whose diet consists mainly of which substance?

    Answer: Wood.

    Xylophagy refers to herbivorous animals primarily consuming wood. Most are arthropods, especially insects, which may specialise in certain plant groups or wood characteristics. Many have symbiotic organisms aiding cellulose breakdown. Examples include Cossidae moths, termites, shipworms, and wood-boring beetles, among others.

    Three

    In the terminology used to describe swans:
    What is a young swan known as, and what two nouns of the same length are used for the male and female, respectively?

    Answers: Cygnet; Cob and pen.

    Young swans are known as cygnets, from Old French cigne or cisne (diminutive suffix et ‘little’), from the Latin word cygnus, a variant form of cycnus ‘swan’, itself from the Greek κύκνος kýknos, a word of the same meaning. An adult male is a cob, from Middle English cobbe (leader of a group); an adult female is a pen.
    — Wikipedia

    Four

    What species of whale was the fictional Moby Dick?

    Answer: Sperm whale.

    Moby Dick is a fictional white sperm whale and the main antagonist in Herman Melville’s novel. Based on the real-life Mocha Dick, Moby Dick is described as having distinctive white markings and a history of attacking and destroying whaling ships. The novel ends with Moby Dick destroying the Pequod, leaving Ishmael as the sole survivor.

    Five

    According to the narrative of the Bible’s  Book of Genesis 4:2, who was the keeper of sheep?

    Answer: Abel.

    Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain a tiller of the ground.
    — Book of Genesis, The Bible

    The Nabi Habeel Mosque, Bilad Ash-Sham, Syria, is believed by Muslims to be the grave of Abel. Abel, murdered by his brother Cain, is the world’s first homicide victim?

  • Animal Crackers

    Sheep.
    Image Wikimedia Commons

    All of todays questions are about animals.

    One

    What birds are shown on the Australian coat of arms?

    Two

    A xylophage is an animal whose diet consists mainly of which substance?

    Three

    In the terminology used to describe swans:
    What is a young swan known as, and what two nouns of the same length are used for the male and female, respectively?

    Four

    What species of whale was the fictional Moby Dick?

    Five

    According to the narrative of the Bible’s  Book of Genesis 4:2, who was the keeper of sheep?

    Good luck! I’ll post the answers later.

  • Before They Invented Drawing Boards What Did They Go Back To? — Answers

    Here are the answers to today’s questions.

    See question three. Horse-drawn plough.
    Image Wikimedia Commons

    Continuing the recent trend, today’s first question is connected to today’s date, 9 June. The remainder of the questions are not date-related but follow on a theme begun in question one.

    One

    In 1781, an English engineer who Encyclopædia Britannica describes as ‘the principal inventor of the railroad locomotive’ was born. Who is he, and which of his locomotives inaugurated public rail travel in September 1828?

    Answer: George Stephenson; Active (aka Locomotion).

    George Stephenson, born on 9 June 1781, in Wylam, Northumberland, England, revolutionised transportation with his locomotive innovations. After building the Blucher and introducing the ‘steam blast’, he gained fame with a mine-safety lamp. In 1825, his Active (renamed Locomotion) locomotive inaugurated public rail travel. He constructed the Liverpool-Manchester line, overcoming opposition, and his Rocket won a 1829 competition. Stephenson’s work spurred global railroad expansion, and he continued as a leading figure in transportation engineering until his death on 12 August 1848.

    Two

    Tea bags were reportedly invented by accident. Modern tea bags are made from paper but what material were the early ones made from?

    Answer: Silk.

    Tea bags were popularised in the early 20th century, reportedly by accident. Around 1908, American tea merchant Thomas Sullivan sent tea samples in small silk bags. Some customers are said to have brewed the tea directly in the bags, mistaking them for a replacement for traditional metal infusers, leading to the development of the modern tea bag. As stated, early tea bags were made of silk; paper tea bags did not become common until later, when manufacturers developed cheaper and more practical filter-paper versions.

    Three

    (Note, in this question, the word ‘houghing’ is an obsolete form of ‘hoeing’ as done with a horse-drawn hoe (hough)).

    What name links the book The New Horse Houghing Husbandry: Or an Essay on the Principles of Tillage and Vegetation, which was published in 1731, with the 1978 album Heavy Horses?

    Answer: Jethro Tull.

    Jethro Tull (1674–1741) was an influential English agronomist and inventor whose innovations shaped modern British agriculture. Initially trained for law, Tull managed his father’s farm in Oxfordshire, where he developed a horse-drawn seed drill around 1701. In 1709, he purchased a farm in Berkshire, adopting vineyard cultivation methods and inventing a horse-drawn hoe. His work, published in The New Horse Houghing Husbandry: Or an Essay on the Principles of Tillage and Vegetation (1731), faced initial criticism but eventually revolutionised farming practices. The eleventh studio album by the band Jethro Tull, Heavy Horses, was released in 1978. It is a folk rock album dedicated to British working ponies and horses. It continues the band’s combination of folk and progressive rock with a darker sound.

    Four

    Adolphe Sax, best known for inventing the saxophone, was born in which present-day country, and in what decade did he patent the saxophone?

    Answer: Belgium; 1840s.

    Adolphe Sax, born in 1814 in Dinant, Belgium, was a Belgian-French instrument maker and inventor of the saxophone, which he patented in 1846. He also developed the saxhorn, saxo-tromba, and saxtuba, and redesigned the bass clarinet. Sax studied flute and clarinet before moving to Paris in 1842 to exhibit his saxophone. Appointed instructor at the Paris Conservatory in 1857, he faced legal battles over patents and died in poverty in 1894. Sax’s innovations significantly impacted the world of music.

    Five

    What are the ‘Four Great Inventions’ traditionally attributed to ancient China? 

    Answer: Papermaking, printing, the compass, and gunpowder.

    These four inventions profoundly influenced world history. Papermaking and printing revolutionised the spread of knowledge, the compass transformed navigation and exploration, and gunpowder changed warfare. The concept of the ‘Four Great Inventions’ became especially popular in the nineteenth century as a way of highlighting China’s major contributions to global civilisation.

    Before They Invented Drawing Boards What Did They Go Back To?

    The post title was a quote from the American stand-up comedian, George Carlin (1937-2008).

  • Before They Invented Drawing Boards What Did They Go Back To?

    See question three. Horse-drawn plough.
    Image Wikimedia Commons

    Continuing the recent trend, today’s first question is connected to today’s date, 9 June. The remainder of the questions are not date-related but follow on a theme begun in question one.

    One

    In 1781, an English engineer who Encyclopædia Britannica describes as ‘the principal inventor of the railroad locomotive’ was born. Who is he, and which of his locomotives inaugurated public rail travel in September 1828?

    Two

    Tea bags were reportedly invented by accident. Modern tea bags are made from paper but what material were the early ones made from?

    Three

    (Note, in this question, the word ‘houghing’ is an obsolete form of ‘hoeing’ as done with a horse-drawn hoe (hough)).

    What name links the book The New Horse Houghing Husbandry: Or an Essay on the Principles of Tillage and Vegetation, which was published in 1731, with the 1978 album Heavy Horses?

    Four

    Adolphe Sax, best known for inventing the saxophone, was born in which present-day country, and in what decade did he patent the saxophone?

    Five

    What are the ‘Four Great Inventions’ traditionally attributed to ancient China? 

    Good luck! I’ll post the answers later.

  • Islands Surrounded by Water — Answers

    Here are the answers to today’s questions.

    Barnhill, Isle of Jura.
    Image Wild About Argyll

    The post title might sound a bit obvious but it is simply a follow-on to yesterday’s, Islands Surrounded by Land.
    The first question relates to today’s date, 8 June, and also to an island. The other questions are not date related but all are about islands.

    One

    In 1946, George Orwell left London and moved to Scotland, where he stayed at a remote house called Barnhill on a Hebridean island to finish his novel, Nineteen Eighty-Four. What island was Barnhill on, and what chronic illness was Orwell suffering as he wrote the novel? 

    Answer: Isle of Jura; Tuberculosis.

    In May 1946, Orwell retreated to Jura to draft Nineteen Eighty-Four at Barnhill. Despite slow progress and health issues, including lung inflammation and tuberculosis, he completed the first draft on 7 November 1947. Miranda Christen typed a clean version, and Orwell sought medical treatment at Hairmyres Hospital, East Kilbride. Orwell was discharged in summer 1948, returned to Jura, and completed a second draft of Nineteen Eighty-Four by November. Unable to find a typist, he retyped it himself despite illness. He left Barnhill in January 1949, and recovered in a sanatorium in the Cotswolds. On June 8, 1949, Nineteen Eighty-four was published.

    Two

    In what ocean is the Chagos Archipelago located?

    Answer: Indian Ocean.

    The Chagos Archipelago, over 60 islands in the Indian Ocean, was under French and then British control. In 1965, the UK expelled its Chagossian population for a US military base. Mauritius claimed the islands, with the ICJ and ITLOS ruling in 2019 and 2021 that the UK must return them. A 2025 treaty transferring sovereignty to Mauritius is on hold due to US, UK, and public opposition, citing UNCLOS Article 298 (b).

    Three

    What island extending from approximately 76° N to 83° N is world’s largest island entirely within the Arctic Circle?

    Answer: Ellesmere Island.

    Ellesmere Island, Canada’s northernmost and third largest island, spans 196,236 square kilometres, slightly smaller than Great Britain. Part of the Queen Elizabeth Islands, it features Cape Columbia, Canada’s northernmost point, and the north geomagnetic pole. The Arctic Cordillera dominates its landscape, with over one-fifth designated as Quttinirpaaq National Park. In 2021, its population was 144, residing in Alert, Eureka, and Grise Fiord, within Nunavut’s Qikiqtaaluk Region. Canada’s other northern islands, which are larger than Ellesmere, such as Baffin Island, extend south of the Arctic Circle and therefore do not answer the question.

    Four

    After the British Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition ship was trapped by pack ice, a small group in an open boat, the James Caird, attempted an 810-mile winter crossing of the South Atlantic Ocean to organise a rescue. What two islands were the starting and ending points of this epic journey?

    Answer: Elephant Island and South Georgia Island.

    In August 1914, Shackleton led the British Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition. The Endurance was trapped in pack ice, drifting for ten months before being crushed. The crew survived on ice floes for five months, reaching Elephant Island. Shackleton and five others sailed 810 miles (700 nautical miles; 1,300 km) to South Georgia in 17 days aboard the open boat, James Caird. The journey saw Atlantic winter storms, including ‘one of the worst hurricanes any of us had ever experienced‘. After four months and four relief expeditions, Shackleton rescued his crew, with none perishing, showcasing his exceptional leadership and resilience. The James Caird is on display at Dulwich College, London, UK, which is Shackleton’s alms mater.

    Five

    What is the largest island in the geographic entity of Europe?

    Answer: Great Britain.

    The designation ‘Great Britain‘ ultimately reflects classical Greek geographic terminology. In the 2nd century CE, Ptolemy referred to the larger island in the British Isles as Megálē Brettanía (‘Great Britain‘), using a descriptive term meaning ‘great‘ or ‘large’. The modern English name developed later from this classical tradition of distinguishing the larger island within the archipelago.

    Islands Surrounded by Water

    The post title might sound a bit obvious but it is simply a follow-on to yesterday’s, Islands Surrounded by Land.
    The first question relates to today’s date, 8 June, and also to an island. The other questions are not date related but all are about islands.

  • Islands Surrounded by Water

    Barnhill, Isle (?).
    Image Wild About Argyll

    The post title might sound a bit obvious but it is simply a follow-on to yesterday’s, Islands Surrounded by Land.
    The first question relates to today’s date, 8 June, and also to an island. The other questions are not date related but all are about islands.

    One

    In 1946, George Orwell left London and moved to Scotland, where he stayed at a remote house called Barnhill on a Hebridean island to finish his novel, Nineteen Eighty-Four. What island was Barnhill on, and what chronic illness was Orwell suffering as he wrote the novel? 

    Two

    In what ocean is the Chagos Archipelago located?

    Three

    What island extending from approximately 76° N to 83° N is world’s largest island entirely within the Arctic Circle?

    Four

    After the British Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition ship was trapped by pack ice, a small group in an open boat, the James Caird, attempted an 810-mile winter crossing of the South Atlantic Ocean to organise a rescue. What two islands were the starting and ending points of this epic journey?

    Five

    What is the largest island in the geographic entity of Europe?

    Good luck! I’ll post the answers later.

  • Today’s the Day — Answers

    Here are the answers to today’s questions.

    Robert F. Kennedy, 1968.
    Image Wikimedia Commons

    All of these questions relate to today, 5 June.

    One

    On 5 June 1968, U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy was fatally shot? Who shot him, and in what building and in what city was he shot?

    Answer: Sirhan Sirhan; Ambassador Hotel, Los Angeles.

    In March 1968, Robert F Kennedy announced his presidential candidacy. By June 4th he had secured five out of six primaries including a victory in California that day. Shortly after midnight on June 5th he addressed his supporters at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. As he exited through a kitchen corridor he was fatally shot by Sirhan Sirhan, a Palestinian immigrant. Kennedy was interred near his brother John at Arlington National Cemetery.

    Two

    AIDS was reported for the first time after a rare form of pneumonia was found in five homosexual men. In what year was this, and in what city was the pneumonia detected?

    Answer: 1981; Los Angeles, U.S.A.

    HIV is a retrovirus attacking the immune system, potentially leading to AIDS without treatment. It is preventable and manageable with antiretroviral therapy, extending life expectancy to nearly normal levels. Early testing and treatment prevent progression and transmission. HIV spreads through unprotected sex, contaminated needles, and mother-to-child transmission. Recognised in the 1980s, HIV/AIDS has significant societal, economic, and political impacts. Originating from primates in west-central Africa, AIDS was first identified in 1981. By 2024, AIDS caused at least 42.3 million deaths globally, with 630,000 deaths in 2023 and 39.9 million living with HIV, 65% in the WHO African Region. 

    Three

    Born this day in 1939, this man would become Canada’s 16th and youngest prime minister 40 years later. Who is he?

    Answer: Joe Clark.

    Joe Clark, Canada’s youngest Prime Minister, led the Progressive Conservative Party from 1976 to 1983 and again from 1998 to 2003. His brief tenure as Prime Minister saw the introduction of freedom of information legislation and the ‘Canadian Caper’ rescue. After losing the 1980 election, he served in Brian Mulroney’s cabinet and later as a UN Special Representative for Cyprus.

    Four

    This author was born in Wales in 1949, and had a breakthrough with his 1978 novel Eye of the Needle. His successful Kingsbridge series began with The Pillars of the Earth (1989). Who is this author?

    Answer: Ken Follett.

    Welsh author Ken Follett, born in 1949, is known for his thrillers and historical novels, selling nearly 200 million copies. His breakthrough came with Eye of the Needle (1978), and he later achieved success with The Pillars of the Earth (1989).

    Five

    This actor turned politician had his first screen credit in a starring role in 1937 as Andy McCaine in Love Is on the Air and 20 years later he was Cdr. Casey Abbott in Hellcats of the Navy. Who is he?

    Answer: Ronald Reagan.

    Ronald Reagan, the 40th president of the United States, was a former movie actor known for his conservative Republicanism and anticommunism. He served as president from 1981 to 1989 and was nicknamed ‘the Great Communicator’ for his oratory skills. Reagan’s policies are credited with contributing to the downfall of Soviet communism. Ronald Reagan died on 5 June 2004.

  • Today’s the Day

    Robert F. Kennedy, 1968.
    Image Wikimedia Commons

    All of these questions relate to today, 5 June.

    One

    On 5 June 1968, U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy was fatally shot? Who shot him, and in what building and in what city was he shot?

    Two

    AIDS was reported for the first time after a rare form of pneumonia was found in five homosexual men. In what year was this, and in what city was the pneumonia detected?

    Three

    Born this day in 1939, this man would become Canada’s 16th and youngest prime minister 40 years later. Who is he?

    Four

    This author was born in Wales in 1949, and had a breakthrough with his 1978 novel Eye of the Needle. His successful Kingsbridge series began with The Pillars of the Earth (1989). Who is this author?

    Five

    This actor turned politician had his first screen credit in a starring role in 1937 as Andy McCaine in Love Is on the Air and 20 years later he was Cdr. Casey Abbott in Hellcats of the Navy. Who is he?

    Good luck! I’ll post the answers later.