Here are the answers to the thirty questions from the last six days.
Something different will occur over the next few days. I will pose five questions each day for six days across various subjects, and each answer will begin with a distinct letter of the alphabet. As you likely deduced, five questions per day across six days yields thirty answers, each starting with a unique letter, leaving four unaccounted for. Consequently, four duplicates exist; in their order of appearance, they spell the name of a villainous figure from the eighth volume of a comic originally serialised in the first half of the 20th century. Although this character is not widely known, the aim is to correctly identify the second, duplicate iteration of these initial letters to reveal the name. The answers will not be given on the same day as the questions but at the end.
Day One
One
Moloko Plus, a barbiturate-spiked milk drink, features in which Anthony Burgess novel?
Answer: A Clockwork Orange.
Moloko Plus, from the Russian word for milk, is a barbiturate-spiked milk served in the Korova Milk Bar.
Two
What is the only planet in our solar system named after a Greek god rather than a Roman one?
Answer: Uranus.
Roughly seven decades after its discovery, the planet named after the Greek god Uranus.
Three
Israel defeated Egypt, Jordan and Syria in the deftly named 5–10 June 1967 war?
Answer: Six-day War.
Tensions had escalated sharply after Egypt closed the Straits of Tiran to Israeli shipping, prompting Israel to launch surprise pre-emptive airstrikes on 5 June that destroyed much of Egypt’s air force. Israeli ground offensives then rapidly captured territory on the Egyptian, Jordanian and Syrian fronts in the Sinai Peninsula, Gaza Strip, West Bank, East Jerusalem and Golan Heights.
Four
What English archaeologist, army officer, diplomat and writer had the forenames Thomas Edward?
Answer: T.E. Lawrence.
Thomas Edward Lawrence, known as Lawrence of Arabia, was a British officer, archaeologist, and writer. He played a key role in the Arab Revolt during WWI, capturing Damascus in 1918. Post-war, he worked in the Foreign Office, published Seven Pillars of Wisdom, and contributed to RAF rescue motorboat development.
Five
Which letter represents tungsten within the periodic table of elements?
Answer: W.
The W is from German Wolfram, which it is also known as. Tungsten is used in English and French, while wolfram is preferred in many European languages and yields the symbol W. Wolfram was accepted by IUPAC in 1949 but revised in 1950; tungsten remains common in Britain and the United States.
Day Two
Six
How many times were the Olympic Games held in Asia during the 20th century?
Answer: Four.
During the 20th century (1901–2000), the Olympic Games were held in Asia four times. The Summer Games were staged in 1964 in Tokyo, Japan, and 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. The Winter Games took place in 1972 in Sapporo and 1998 in Nagano, both in Japan.
Seven
Farrokh Bulsara became a chemical element, which one?
Answer: Mercury.
Freddie Mercury, born Farrokh Bulsara, co-founded Queen with Brian May and Roger Taylor. A British singer, songwriter and pianist, he gained global fame through his vocal range and theatrical style that shaped the band’s artistic direction.
Eight
Scientists think the … is a giant spherical shell surrounding the Sun, planets and Kuiper Belt Objects. It’s like a big, thick bubble around our solar system, made of icy, comet-like objects.
— NASA Science
The statement above comes from NASA Science’s website; which two words have been omitted from it?
Answer: Oort Cloud.
Jan Oort proposed the Oort Cloud, a distant spherical shell of icy bodies spanning 2,000–100,000 AU (Astronomical units).
Nine
First appearing in the 1979 novel Jailbird, the fictional Ramjac Corporation appears in the writings of which US author?
Answer: Kurt Vonnegut.
RAMJAC Corporation, a fictional megacorp in Kurt Vonnegut’s Jailbird, at its peak owns 19 percent of the United States, double the next largest conglomerate in the Free World.
Ten
Which religion’s traditional religious dress includes the kushti and sedreh?
Answer: Zoroastrianism.
The sedreh is the sacred Zoroastrian undergarment worn with the kushti, or sacred girdle. Both garments form an important part of Zoroastrian religious dress.
Day Three
Eleven
What is the only capital city that features in the Nato phonetic alphabet?
Answer: Lima.
Lima is both the capital and the largest city of Peru.
Twelve
Which Walter Scott story features Lady Rowena?
Answer: Ivanhoe: A Romance or Ivanhoe.
Published in December 1819 as a Waverley novel, Ivanhoe by Walter Scott shifted to the 1190s high-medieval period and became his best-known work with many twentieth-century adaptations.
Thirteen
Which letter comes between epsilon and eta in the Greek alphabet?
Answer: Zeta.
Zeta is the sixth Greek alphabet letter, pronounced /ˈziːtə/ in the UK and /ˈzeɪtə/ in the US. It has a numerical value of 7 and originates from the Phoenician letter zayin. Zeta influenced the Roman Z and Cyrillic З. The Greek letter zeta was named differently from its Phoenician origin, following the pattern of beta, eta, and theta. Zed, the name for the Latin letter Z in Commonwealth English, derives from zeta. Swedish and many Romance languages use zeta for both Greek and Roman Z forms.
Fourteen
The dollar is the currency of which nation on Borneo’s northern coast?
Answer: Brunei (aka Brunei Darussalam).
Officially Brunei Darussalam, a Southeast Asian nation on Borneo’s northern coast, is an absolute monarchy led by Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah since 1967. The currency is the Brunei dollar (BND). Rich in petroleum and natural gas, it achieved significant economic growth in the 1990s-2000s. Brunei is highly developed, politically stable, and a member of several international organisations.
Fifteen
Who wrote the song Mama Told Me Not To Come?
Answer: Randy Newman.
Composed by Randy Newman for Eric Burdon in 1966, ‘Mama Told Me Not to Come’ topped the US Billboard Hot 100 through Three Dog Night in 1970; Tom Jones and Stereophonics reached number four in the UK in 2000.
Day Four
Sixteen
Which West Indian dance shares its name with the first circle of Hell in Dante’s Inferno?
Answer: Limbo.
Limbo, originating in Trinidad and Tobago wakes, involves passing under a low bar. Julia Edwards popularised it in the 1950s and toured globally from the 1960s. Limbo, from Latin limbus, denotes a medieval Catholic afterlife state for those dying in original sin without assignment to Hell.
Seventeen
What are coloured differently in a person with heterochromia?
Answer: Eyes.
Heterochromia involves colour variation in irises, hair or skin, driven by melanin production, delivery and concentration. It may be inherited or result from genetic mosaicism, chimerism, disease or injury, occurring in humans and certain domesticated breeds.
Eighteen
Formed in San Francisco in 1965, this US psychedelic rock group gained a f
Popular following based on their albums but had no great luck with singles, their biggest hit being ‘ Fresh Air’. The band name has some verbal linkage to the chemical Mercury and to text messaging; what is that three-word name?
Answer: Quicksilver Messenger Service.
Formed in 1965 in San Francisco, Quicksilver Messenger Service shaped psychedelic rock with jazz, classical and folk influences. Members included John Cipollina, Gary Duncan, Greg Elmore, David Freiberg, Nicky Hopkins and Dino Valenti. Despite limited singles success, albums reached the Top 30; Duncan and Freiberg toured in 2006.
Nineteen
Escudella is a traditional stew-soup of which European region?
Answer: Catalonia (also Valencia).
Escudella i carn d’olla is a traditional Catalan and Valencian soup with meat and vegetables. Francesc Eiximenis noted daily consumption in the 14th century. It features a pilota, seasonal vegetables, bones and botifarra.
Twenty
Truman Capote described which Breakfast at Tiffany’s character as an ‘American geisha’?
Answer: Holly Golightly.
Truman Capote’s 1958 novella Breakfast at Tiffany’s depicts a writer’s New York City memories of neighbour Holly Golightly; a 1961 film adaptation followed.
Day Five
Twenty-one
Who was the first actor to refuse the Academy award for Best Actor?
Answer: George C Scott.
George Campbell Scott, an American actor known for stern authority roles, declined his Academy Award for Patton. His accolades include two Golden Globes and two Primetime Emmys; his work spanned stage, film and television, often with wives Colleen Dewhurst and Trish Van Devere.
Twenty-two
Which great apes are the heaviest tree-dwelling animals?
Answer: Orangutang.
Orangutans, genus Pongo, are arboreal great apes in Indonesia and Malaysia, comprising Bornean, Sumatran and Tapanuli species. They are solitary, long-lived, fruit-eating apes with reddish-brown hair; dominant males develop cheek pads.
Twenty-three
Kashgar, the westernmost Chinese city, is located in which province?
Answer: Xinjiang.
Xinjiang, the largest Chinese division, spans 1.6 million square kilometres with 25 million people. Bordering eight countries and three regions, mountain ranges divide the Dzungarian and Tarim basins; only 9.7% is habitable. Ethnic groups include Uyghurs and Han Chinese.
Twenty-four
Who was the first racing driver to win the world title in a car made by his own company?
Answer: Jack Brabham.
Brabham, an Australian driver and executive, won three Formula One titles (1959, 1960, 1966) and 14 Grands Prix. Co-founding Brabham in 1960, he remains the only champion in an eponymous car. After retiring in 1970, he returned to Australia.
Twenty-five
In computing what is half a byte called?
Answer: Nibble.
A nibble is four bits, half a byte, and typically represented by one hexadecimal digit. Four-bit systems use nibbles for storage and operations.
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Day Six
Twenty-six
The 1971 film Up Your Legs Forever was directed by John Lennon and which Japanese multimedia artist?
Answer: Yoko Ono.
Up Your Legs Forever, filmed in Manhattan by John Lennon and Yoko Ono without permits, follows a script requiring continuous upward shots of 367 pairs of legs. Participants received $1 and a photograph; notable figures included Shirley Clarke and the New York Dolls.
Twenty-seven
In 1977, the guillotine was last used to execute French criminals during whose presidency?
Answer: Valéry Giscard d’Estaing.
Valéry Giscard d’Estaing was the President of France from 1974 to 1981. The last person to be executed by a government via guillotine was Hamida Djandoubi, a Tunisian murderer, on 10 September 1977 in France.
Twenty-eight
Jai alai is a version of what game?
Answer: Pelota.
Pelota (Spanish for ball) refers to the popular and shortened names for a number of ball games: Basque pelota, Jai alai, Palla, Pelota mixteca and Pétanque among others.
Twenty-nine
Francis Bacon modelled the ‘screaming pope’ in Head VI (1949) on which Spanish painter’s Portrait of Pope Innocent X?
Answer: Diego Velázquez (in full Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez).
Diego Velázquez, a Spanish Baroque painter and leading artist for Philip IV, produced works including Las Meninas. His style influenced later artists, and most pieces are held in the Museo del Prado.
Thirty
In 1937, Edwin H Land founded which company to exploit the use of a namesake polarising polymer?
Answer: Polaroid.
Founded in 1937 by Edwin H. Land, Polaroid Corporation produced instant film and cameras creating the first instant camera, the Land Camera, in 1948. After bankruptcy in 2001 the assets passed through owners until Wiaczesław Smołokowski acquired them in 2017, enabling Impossible Project to rebrand as Polaroid Originals and later Polaroid.
King Ottokar’s Sceptre
The four repeated letters – Z, L, O and P – featured on days 3 to 6 and point you towards Zlop. He’s a villain from Hergé’s King Ottokar’s Sceptre, which ran from 1938 to 1939; as I said in the daily introduction he is not well-known but the aim was to identify the duplicate letters. King Ottokar’s Sceptre satirises Nazi expansionism in Europe as Tintin and Snowy stand up for King Muskar XII’s monarchy in Syldavia.
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