Tag: sport

  • Number Games — Answers

    Here are the answers to today’s questions.

    Maria Sharapova completed the Career Grand Slam after winning the 2012 French Open.
    Image Wikimedia Commons

    Today’s answers are all single numbers — even the one that is a large number can be written as a single digit if you read the question carefully — and form part of a sequence.


    One

    How many of the eight planets in the solar system have one, and only one, natural satellite, and what are the names of this/these planet(s)?

    Answer: 1. Earth.

    Listing the eight planets in order from the nearest to the Sun: Mercury and Venus have no known moons. Earth has one known moon and is the only such planet. Mars has two; Jupiter, 115; Saturn, 292; Uranus, 29; and Neptune has 16. 


    Two

    Maria Sharapova retired from tennis in 2020. Of the five Grand Slam Singles Championships she won, how many were at the French Open, and who, if any, was/were her defeated finalist(s)?

    Answer: 2. Sara Errani; Simona Halep.

    Maria Sharapova won the French Open in 2012, beating Sara Errani in the final, 6–3, 6–2; and in 2014, she defeated Simona Halep in the final, 6–4, 6–7(5–7), 6–4. Sharapova, a former Russian professional tennis player, achieved the career Grand Slam in singles and was ranked world No. 1 for 21 weeks. She won 36 WTA Tour-level singles titles, including five major titles, and was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2025. Sharapova retired from tennis in 2020.


    Three

    How many siblings does King Charles III of Great Britain have, and what are they known as?

    Answer: 3. Anne, Princess Royal; Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh.

    King Charles III has three siblings: Anne, Princess Royal, who was born in 1950; Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, born in 1960; and Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh, born in 1964. Mountbatten-Windsor was previously known as Prince Andrew, Duke of York, but was stripped of his titles, royal styles and honours as a result of his association with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. 


    Four

    The World Health Organisation estimates that approximately how many million people worldwide are bitten by snakes each year?

    Answer: 5. (i.e. 5 million).

    World Health Organisation estimates that annually, 5.4 million people are bitten by snakes, with 1.8 to 2.7 million envenomings. Snake bites result in 81,410 to 137,880 deaths and three times more amputations. Venomous bites cause paralysis, bleeding disorders, kidney failure, and tissue damage. Agricultural workers and children, especially, are severely affected.


    Five

    How many countries share a land border with Turkey (officially the Republic of Türkiye), and list them in alphabetical order?

    Answer: 8. Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Iran, Iraq and Syria.

    If we make a start at the Black Sea to the north and go in a clockwise direction, they are Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iran, Iraq, Syria (Mediterranean Sea and then Aegean Sea), Greece, and Bulgaria.


    Numbers Game

    Today’s title referred to the answers all being a number, but these are five numbers from near the start of the Fibonacci sequence: 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21.


  • Number Games

    Maria Sharapova.
    Image Wikimedia Commons

    Today’s answers are all single numbers — even the one that is a large number can be written as a single digit if you read the question carefully — and form part of a sequence.


    One

    How many of the eight planets in the solar system have one, and only one, natural satellite, and what are the names of this/these planet(s)?


    Two

    Maria Sharapova retired from tennis in 2020. Of the five Grand Slam Singles Championships she won, how many were at the French Open, and who, if any, was/were her defeated finalist(s)?


    Three

    How many siblings does King Charles III of Great Britain have, and what are they known as?


    Four

    The World Health Organisation estimates that approximately how many millions of people worldwide are bitten by snakes each year?


    Five

    How many countries share a land border with Turkey (officially the Republic of Türkiye), and list them in alphabetical order?

    Good luck! I’ll post the answers later.


  • Gallimaufry XI — Answers

    Here are the answers to today’s questions.

    Question two. Just Room Enough Island, Thousand Islands archipelago.
    Image Wikimedia Commons

    Today’s first question concerns the date 2nd June. The other questions are random and unrelated.


    One

    In 1953, ‘Inquiring Camera Girl’ covered the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II at London’s Westminster Abbey for the Washington Times-Herald. Shortly to become very famous herself, who was ‘Inquiring Camera Girl’?

    Answer: Jackie Bouvier (Kennedy).

    Jackie Bouvier, a reporter for the Washington Times-Herald and writer of the paper’s Inquiring Camera Girl column, was in the crowd outside the Abbey for the coronation. Three months later, she would marry John F. Kennedy, and in under eight years, she would be First Lady. 


    Two

    In what body of water are North America’s Thousand Islands found, and to the nearest fifty, approximately how many islands are in the archipelago?

    Answer: Saint Lawrence River; 1,850.

    The Thousand Islands, an archipelago of 1,864 islands, straddles the Canada-US border in the Saint Lawrence River. The islands range in size and must have at least one square foot of land above water year-round, and have one or two living trees* to be considered part of the Thousand Islands. (*Number of trees varies depending on source.)


    Three

    The Olympic Rings are a symbol consisting of five interlocking coloured rings. What colours are the rings on top?

    Answer: Blue, black and red.

    The rings are interlaced from the left and are blue, yellow, black, green, and red. The founder of the modern Olympics stated the following in 1913:

    … the six colours (including the flag’s white background) combined in this way reproduce the colours of every country without exception. The blue and yellow of Sweden, the blue and white of Greece, the tricolour flags of France, the United Kingdom, the United States, Germany, Belgium, Italy, and Hungary, and the yellow and red of Spain are included, as are the innovative flags of Brazil and Australia, and those of ancient Japan and modern China. This, truly, is an international emblem. —Baron Pierre Coubertin, Olympique, August 1913.


    Four

    The forum currently known as the Group of Seven (G7) has, since its founding, been variously the G6, G7, and the G8. Angela Merkel was the second woman to chair this forum; who was the first?

    Answer: Margaret Thatcher.

    The Group of Seven (G7) is an intergovernmental forum of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK, the US, and the EU, focusing on pluralism and liberal democracy. Established in 1973, it addresses global issues like trade and climate change. Despite criticism for limited representation, the G7 has influenced initiatives like the Paris Agreement. Members, with a population of 780 million, contribute over 44% to the world’s nominal GDP and 30% by purchasing power parity.


    Five

    What colour are white rhinoceros?

    Answer: Grey.

    White rhinos, the second-largest land mammals, are named for their wide mouths, not their colour and there is no difference in the skin colour of white and black rhinos. There are two subspecies of white rhino: northern and southern. As of March 2018, only two female northern white rhinos remain, critically endangered due to poaching. Southern white rhinos, once thought extinct, now number around 18,000, classified as Near Threatened. They inhabit South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, and Kenya. White rhinos have complex social structures, with females forming groups and males defending territories.


  • Gallimaufry XI

    Question two. Just Room Enough Island, Thousand Islands archipelago.
    Image Wikimedia Commons

    Today’s first question concerns the date 2nd June. The other questions are random and unrelated.


    One

    In 1953, ‘Inquiring Camera Girl’ covered the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II at London’s Westminster Abbey for the Washington Times-Herald. Shortly to become very famous herself, who was ‘Inquiring Camera Girl’?


    Two

    In what body of water are North America’s Thousand Islands found, and to the nearest fifty, approximately how many islands are in the archipelago?


    Three

    The Olympic Rings are a symbol consisting of five interlocking coloured rings. What colours are the rings on top?


    Four

    The forum currently known as the Group of Seven (G7) has, since its founding, been variously the G6, G7, and the G8. Angela Merkel was the second woman to chair this forum; who was the first?


    Five

    What colour are white rhinoceros?


    Good luck! I’ll post the answers later.


  • Happy Birthday, Mr. President — Answers

    Happy Birthday, Mr. President.
    Robert F. Kennedy, Marilyn Monroe and John F. Kennedy.
    Image Wikimedia Commons (cropped)

    Five questions which in some way are connected to today, May 19th.


    One

    The world’s first national park service was established in 1911 in which country?

    Answer: Canada.

    In 1911, Canada established the first national parks service in the world. What began as a cluster of parks in the Rocky Mountains gradually became a national system, fostering tourism and economic growth while upholding conservation ideals. In 1914, the definition of a “Dominion Park” was expanded to include significant historic places, laying the groundwork for a modern system of iconic national parks and national historic sites, which welcome millions of visitors annually, and initiating a tradition of national and international leadership in the management of protected places that continues to this day.
    — Parks Canada


    Two

    Colin Chapman, an English engineer born in 1928, founded which sports car company, and Formula One team?

    Answer: Lotus Cars; Team Lotus.

    Anthony Colin Bruce Chapman, founder of Lotus Cars, was an English design engineer known for his lightweight, high-handling sports cars. Under his direction, Team Lotus achieved significant success in Formula One and the Indianapolis 500.


    Three

    In 1959, the North Vietnamese Army’s Group 559 was established to determine how to maintain supply lines to South Vietnam. The supply route to fulfil this brief became known as what? And what countries, other than North and South Vietnam, did the route traverse?

    Answer: Ho Chi Minh trail; Laos and Cambodia.

    The Ho Chi Minh Trail, a logistical network of roads and trails, ran from North to South Vietnam through Laos and Cambodia, supporting the Viet Cong and People’s Army of Vietnam during the Vietnam War. Despite being heavily targeted by air interdiction, the trail effectively supplied troops in the south.


    Four

    Charlotte, the future queen consort of George III, was born in 1744 in the small duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. This duchy was part of what empire?

    Answer: Holy Roman Empire.

    Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Queen of Great Britain and Ireland from 1761 to 1818, was the longest-serving queen consort. She was a patron of the arts, introduced the Christmas tree to Britain, and was deeply affected by her husband’s illness and the French Revolution.


    Five

    On this day Marilyn Monroe famously sang Happy Birthday, Mr. President at a gala to mark John F. Kennedy’s birthday. The gala, a Democratic Party fundraiser, was held ten days before the president’s birthday. What age would the president become on that birthday, and where was the gala held?

    Answers: 45 years of age; Madison Square Gardens, NYC.

    Marilyn Monroe sang Happy Birthday to President John F. Kennedy at a 1962 gala, inserting ‘Mr. President‘ for his name and adding a snippet of Thanks for the Memory with new lyrics.

    Happy Birthday, Mr. President

    [Chorus]
    Happy birthday to you
    Happy birthday to you
    Happy birthday, Mr President
    Happy birthday to you 

    [Verse]
    Thanks, Mr President, for all the things you’ve done
    The battles that you’ve won
    The way you deal with U.S. Steel and our problems by the ton
    We thank you so much 

    [Outro]
    Everybody, happy birthday

    [Chorus]
    Happy birthday to you
    Happy birthday to you
    Happy birthday, Mr President
    Happy birthday to you 

    [Verse]
    Thanks, Mr President, for all the things you’ve done
    The battles that you’ve won
    The way you deal with U.S. Steel and our problems by the ton
    We thank you so much 

    [Outro]
    Everybody, happy birthday
    — Lyrics from Genius.com


  • Happy Birthday, Mr. President

    Happy Birthday, Mr. President.
    Robert F. Kennedy, Marilyn Monroe and John F. Kennedy.
    Image Wikimedia Commons (cropped)

    Five questions which in some way are connected to today, May 19th.


    One

    The world’s first national park service was established in 1911 in which country?


    Two

    Colin Chapman, an English engineer born in 1928, founded which sports car company, and Formula One team?


    Three

    In 1959, the North Vietnamese Army’s Group 559 was established to determine how to maintain supply lines to South Vietnam. The supply route to fulfil this brief became known as what? And what countries, other than North and South Vietnam, did the route traverse?


    Four

    Charlotte, the future queen consort of George III, was born in 1744 in the small duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. This duchy was part of what empire?


    Five

    On this day Marilyn Monroe famously sang Happy Birthday, Mr. President at a gala to mark John F. Kennedy’s birthday. The gala, a Democratic Party fundraiser, was held ten days before the president’s birthday. What age would the president become on that birthday, and where was the gala held?


    Good luck! I’ll post the answers later.


  • Take Your Pick — Answers

    Here are today’s answers.

    Charles Darwin, c.1868.
    Image Wikimedia Commons

    Today’s questions are multiple-choice and don’t have a specific theme.


    One

    … was one of the names commonly used for evolutionary ideas in the 19th century before Charles Darwin published On The Origin of Species (1859).
    — Wikipedia

    Which of these words is missing from the beginning of this quote from Wikipedia?

    1. Transactional
    2. Transmutation
    3. Transubstantiation

    Answer: 2. Transmutation.

    Transmutation, a term used for evolutionary ideas before Darwin, was coined by Joseph Gottlieb Kölreuter to describe species changes through hybridisation. The term ‘evolution’ gained widespread use in the 1860s.


    Two

    Who was an American Formula 1 driver?

    1. Mario Andretti
    2. Mario Puzo
    3. Mario Lanza

    Answer: 1. Mario Andretti.

    Mario Andretti, an American former racing driver, competed in Formula One from 1968 to 1982 and IndyCar from 1964 to 1994. He won the Formula One World Drivers’ Championship in 1978 and achieved numerous victories in various racing disciplines, including the Indianapolis 500 and Daytona 500. Andretti’s legacy as a racing icon is cemented by his 111 official victories and his induction into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame. Mario Puzo, an American author, wrote The Godfather. Mario Lanza was an American tenor and actor.


    Three

    Which of these is a World Heritage Site described as ‘an area of approximately 40,000 interlocking basalt columns’?

    1. Skara Brae
    2. Giant’s Causeway
    3. Macgillycuddy’s Reeks

    Answer: 2. Giant’s Causeway.

    The Giant’s Causeway, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, features 40,000 interlocking basalt columns formed by an ancient volcanic eruption. Owned by the National Trust, it is a popular tourist attraction, receiving nearly one million visitors annually.


    Four

    What noun means ‘a herd of wild swine’?

    1. Blunder 
    2. Pounder
    3. Sounder

    Answer: 3. Sounder.

    Sounder’s origin is described by the Oxford English Dictionary as

    – ORIGIN late Middle English: from Old French sundre, sonre, of Germanic origin. — Oxford English Dictionary 


    Five

    What Hollywood actress was born with the surname FitzSimons, in Ranelagh, Dublin, Ireland on 17 August 1920.

    1. Carole Lombard 
    2. Maureen O’Hara 
    3. Rita Hayworth

    Answer: 2. Maureen O’Hara.

    Maureen O’Hara was an Irish-American actress known for her roles in Westerns and adventure films, particularly her collaborations with John Ford and John Wayne. She was nicknamed “the Queen of Technicolour” and starred in numerous successful films throughout the 1940s to 1960s. O’Hara retired in 1971 but returned to acting in 1991 and received an Honorary Academy Award in 2014.


  • Take Your Pick

    Charles Darwin, c.1868.
    Image Wikimedia Commons

    Today’s questions are multiple-choice and don’t have a specific theme.


    One

    … was one of the names commonly used for evolutionary ideas in the 19th century before Charles Darwin published On The Origin of Species (1859).
    — Wikipedia

    Which of these words is missing from the beginning of this quote from Wikipedia?

    1. Transactional
    2. Transmutation
    3. Transubstantiation

    Two

    Who was an American Formula 1 driver?

    1. Mario Andretti
    2. Mario Puzo
    3. Mario Lanza

    Three

    Which of these is a World Heritage Site described as ‘an area of approximately 40,000 interlocking basalt columns’?

    1. Skara Brae
    2. Giant’s Causeway
    3. Macgillycuddy’s Reeks

    Four

    What noun means ‘a herd of wild swine’?

    1. Blunder 
    2. Pounder
    3. Sounder


    Five

    What Hollywood actress was born with the surname FitzSimons, in Ranelagh, Dublin, Ireland on 17 August 1920.

    1. Carole Lombard 
    2. Maureen O’Hara 
    3. Rita Hayworth

    Good luck! I’ll post the answers later.


  • Binary II — Answers

    Here are today’s answers.

    Logo of the Wimbledon Championships.
    Image Wikimedia Commons

    Today’s questions are all either true or false.


    One

    Agrajag is a tragic and piteous creature who is continually reincarnated and subsequently killed, each time unknowingly, by …
    — Wikipedia

    Is it true or false that this quote from Wikipedia refers to a character from Terry Pratchett’s Discworld novels who is unknowingly killed by Mort across several incarnations?

    Answer: False.

    Agrajag is a tragic and piteous creature who is continually reincarnated and subsequently killed, each time unknowingly, by Arthur Dent.
    — Wikipedia

    Agrajag is repeatedly killed by Arthur Dent, the hapless protagonist of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams. First appearing in Life, the Universe and Everything, Agrajag’s past incarnations include a bowl of petunias, a rabbit, and an old man, all meeting their ends due to Arthur. Agrajag seeks revenge, redirecting Arthur to a Cathedral of Hate, but fails repeatedly. In Mostly Harmless, Arthur inadvertently kills Agrajag again, allowing Arthur to die. Douglas Adams voiced Agrajag in the radio series. In And Another Thing…, cosmic balance shifts, benefiting Arthur. Agrajag also appears in the 2017 TV series Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency as a dog which suffers the expected consequences.


    Two

    Is it true or false that the 1936 Olympic Summer Games were opened by Kaiser Wilhelm II?

    Answer: False.

    Adolf Hitler, the de facto legal dictator of Germany, opened these games. Wilhelm II, the last German Emperor, reigned from 1888 to 1918, ending the Hohenzollern dynasty’s rule. His erratic foreign policy and naval build-up alienated the rest of Europe, leading to World War I. After Germany’s defeat, he abdicated in 1918, fled to the Netherlands, and died in 1941 during that country’s Nazi occupation.


    Three

    Is it true or false that a filoplume is a type of small crusty specimens of lava?

    Answer: False.

    A filoplume is a feather.

    Filoplumes are hairlike feathers with a few soft barbs near the tip. They are associated with contour feathers and may be sensory or decorative in function. Bristlelike, vaneless feathers occur around the mouth, eyes, and nostrils of birds. They are especially conspicuous around the gape (corners of the mouth) of birds that catch insects in the air.
    — Encyclopædia Britannica 


    Four

    Is it true or false that in 2000 Venus Williams was the first African American woman to win the ladies singles championship at Wimbledon?

    Answer: False.

    Williams was the first Black and African American woman to win the title since Althea Gibson in 1958. In 1957, Althea Gibson’s year, she became the first Black champion at Wimbledon, defeating Darlene Hard in the singles final. She received the trophy from Queen Elizabeth II, marking a significant milestone. Gibson also won the doubles championship for the second consecutive year, highlighting her exceptional season. Upon returning home, Gibson became the second Black American, after Jesse Owens, to receive a ticker tape parade in NYC. Mayor Wagner awarded her the Bronze Medallion. She won her first US National Championship, reached eight Grand Slam finals in 1957, and won multiple titles, including Wimbledon and US National singles.


    Five

    Is it true or false that mainland China, which is approximately 5,000 km from east to west, has five time zones?

    Answer: False.

    China uses a single official time zone, UTC+08:00, despite spanning five geographical zones, making it the largest country to do so. This standard is known domestically as Beijing Time and internationally as China Standard Time, and it has not observed daylight saving time since 1991. The system applies uniformly across Mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau. Standardised timekeeping developed from 19th-century Shanghai, where observatory-based time signals evolved into a GMT+8 standard used by coastal ports. Although multiple time zones were proposed in 1918, including five regional standards, the country ultimately adopted a single unified time based on Beijing.


  • Binary II

    Logo of the Wimbledon Championships.
    Image Wikimedia Commons

    Today’s questions are all either true or false.


    One

    Agrajag is a tragic and piteous creature who is continually reincarnated and subsequently killed, each time unknowingly, by …
    — Wikipedia

    Is it true or false that this quote from Wikipedia refers to a character from Terry Pratchett’s Discworld novels who is unknowingly killed by Mort across several incarnations?


    Two

    Is it true or false that the 1936 Olympic Summer Games were opened by Kaiser Wilhelm II?


    Three

    Is it true or false that a filoplume is a type of small crusty specimens of lava?


    Four

    Is it true or false that in 2000 Venus Williams was the first African American woman to win the ladies singles championship at Wimbledon?


    Five

    Is it true or false that mainland China, which is approximately 5,000 km from east to west, has five time zones?


    Good luck! I’ll post the answers later.