“Pop” goes the “Quiz”-el

 

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History     

 

1)  Who was the first American President?   (hint: it was NOT George Washington!)   

Answer: John Hanson, who became President under the pre-Constitutional Articles of Confederation in 1781.  He was unanimously elected by Congress (which included Virginia Senator George Washington.)  According to the AoC, term limits were one year, and there were actually six more American Presidents who followed Hanson until 1789, when the Articles were thrown out in favor of The Constitution, under which Washington was elected.

Best Answers:

I do believe George Washington was the first ELECTED American President. So now tell me who was the first American President?  —  Cinder

Well, I could cheat and look up the answer somewhere on the internet, but that would be defeating the purpose, eh what?  —  Bruddah Max

John Hanson - also the first Mason to be president. This is NOT a coincidence, if you ask me..  —  St. Marc

How bizarre that I should have just read about this the other day. I'm assuming the answer you're looking for is John Hanson. The problems is that when he held his position there was no such thing as a Presidency, much less a nation known as "The United States." There was an affiliation of united states, but that's an entirely different kind of flying...altogether. They were not at the time, intended to be a unified country. Snopes has a good bit about this. HEre's the other bit of prescience: I was just about to e-mail you and ask you for another pop quiz!  —  Ryfun

[saint’s peshar: you will notice the wording of the question is “American President”, not “President of the United States.”]

What the hell?  —  Ranch King 

John Hanson  —  Anonymous

The magical one!..I dunno..it just wasn't the first under the constitution or something..one year term..i forget now. Look..it's not my fault I have a NY public school education.  —  Lord Feldo

Michael Douglas. At least he was the first one that I would acknowledge. Martin Sheen, Douglas's Chief of Staff, has been doing a superb job since.  —  Adeptio

I would have to guess Lincoln.  He was far enough down the line to have been born in America...he was assassinated, too...I think that may be enough to qualify him as an American President.  —  The Ignition Missionary

The one who came up with the idea to wear masks of dead guys while robbing banks.  —  labrat

Alfred E Newman  —  Taotaejay



2)  What world leader holds the record for killing the most people of his/her own nation (at least 30 million in 3 years)?  

Answer: Mao Zedong.  Between 1958 and 1961, China had the worst famine in recorded history, directly caused by the ineptness of Mao’s “Great Leap Forward.”  (A good, brief summation can be found here.)  Unfortunately, Mao’s mandatory copy of the “Little Red Book” was inedible, so between 30 and 40 million people starved to death.  That’s more indigenous people killed than by Hitler and Stalin combined.

Best Answers:

Joseph Stalin? another guess.  —  Cinder

This depends on whether you accept the commonly accepted figures. Arguably it is a contest between Stalin and Mao Tse Tung of the USSR and PRC respectively. Mao killed his 30-50 million through starvation during the Great Leap Forward, having people melt down iron tables and such into ingots as a demonstration of industrial capacity. Sad. However, Stalin directly executed, had killed by others, accidentally bombed etc. 30-50 million, mostly Ukranians. I guess it's stone/parchment/scythe time.  —  Bruddah Max

Pol Pot, if you believe the OFFICIAL records. Franklin D. Roosevelt, if you know the REAL story..  —  St. Marc

Sheez. That's though...Pol pot. Stalin. Pol Pot. Stalin. Damn. I don't think there *were* 30 million people in Cambodia. You know, I'm gonna go with the proven leader, the 1942 Man of the Year, Stalin. Now watch it be some flippin' ancient emperor I've never heard of.  —  Ryfun

Adolf Hitler.  —  Ranch King 

Mao Zedong.  Bastard  —  Anonymous

Ze Dong..Mao Tse Tong.De Dong..something like that..he was one of crappiest farmere there were..didn't even know about how far to plant sorgum root.  —  Lord Feldo

Yeah. Sure. You betcha.  —  Adeptio

Mao Tse Dung?  He is the poster child for fetal execution.  —  The Ignition Missionary

Osama Bin Laden, although I suppose technically speaking they are the ones pulling the triggers or even flying planes  —  labrat

Idi Amin  —  Taotaejay

 

3)  What were the chief weapons of the Spanish Inquisition?    

Answer: Fear, surprise, ruthless efficiency, an almost fanatical devotion to the Pope, and nice red uniforms. Oh, come in again...  [bonus for mentioning the comfy chair, the soft cushions, and the refrigerator rack.]

Best Answers:

surprise and fear.. fear and surprise, ruthless effciency.?  —  Cinder

Fear. Fear and surprise. Their two weapons were fear and surprise. And a ruthless efficiency. Their three weapons were fear, surprise, and a ruthless efficiency. And a fanatical devotion to the Pope. Their four… amongs their weaponry were such diverse elements as fear, suprise, a ruthless efficiency, and an almost fanatical devotion to the Pope.  —  Bruddah Max

Fear, Surprise, an almost fanatical devotion to the Pope, rope, rack, red-hot pincers, and Mr. Thingy..  —  St. Marc

Amongst their weaponry are such diverse elements as fear, surprise, ruthless efficiency, an almost fanatical devotion to the Pope, and a nice red uniform. Not to mention the Rack.  —  Ryfun

Canons  —  Ranch King 

Fear, surprise,ruthless efficiency, devoted to the pope like no body else And what about those red uniforms. :)  —  Anonymous

Surprise! Nobody expected the spanish inquisition. That and being determined little tortorous people.  —  Lord Feldo

Little known fact that it was indeed torture by Beavers. Those little buck teeth caused more damage than any other weapon of the time.  —  Adeptio

The broom and the wart...used by witches to ward off the inquisitors!  —  The Ignition Missionary

English dictionaries  —  labrat

Spam, herring, very small rocks, coconuts, etc.  —  Taotaejay

 

Math     

 

1)  How much dirt would be in a hole 6 feet deep, 6 feet wide, and 6 feet across?

Answer: None.  It’s a hole, fer chris’sake!  The 216' of dirt removed is what makes it “hole-some.”

Best Answers:

216 feet  —  Cinder

There's no dirt in the hole because it is a hole. However, if the hole was excavated in dirt, there would be approximately 180 square feet of exposed dirt surface in that hole.  —  Bruddah Max

None. Holes are the absence of dirt..  —  St. Marc

No dirt. Just a body.  —  Ryfun

none  —  Ranch King 

hummmm thought it was a hole? = NONE. maybe we can stuff evil matt down in that hole :) hehe evil matt not as evil as he claims  —  Anonymous

Oh..i don't know..how..bout..Nothing. God..Stupid..that's like asking "how much lighter fluid is there in an empty zippo? Dumbarse..  —  Lord Feldo

That would be.... let's see... 6*6*6, Wait a minute! This is a trick, that is the Devil's Number... and there is nothing in a hole, so this must be a trick for my soul!  —  Adeptio

'would be' being the qualifier here...i would have to say the amount of dirt is going to depend on the size of the coffin...but before that...none.  —  The Ignition Missionary

It all depends whose buried in it  —  labrat

Why would there be dirt in a hole?!!  —  Taotaejay

 

2)  Which is faster: a calculator or an abacus?   

Answer:  With one exception, an abacus, because you do not have to hit an “equal” key to get your answer.  The exception is long division that results in remainders.  Even then, it’s pretty close.  Also, an abacus is noticeably slower on things such as square roots, trigonometry functions, etc.

Best Answers:

abacus  —  Cinder

This would depend on the calculation begin performed. Simple arithmetics are performed more quickly on an abacus by many Orientals. Complicated square root calculations of non-square numbers (painfully slow using algebra or calculus) is performed more quickly on a modern calculator. Of course, the fastest calculator of them all is The Human Calculator - I seen him do them calculatin' real fast like on tee vee!  —  Bruddah Max

When dropped on the moon, they fall at exactly the same rate. For basic arithmetic, an abacus is faster in skillful hands. For serious calculation, a calculator is faster..  —  St. Marc

In the 5k fun run or the 10k competitive sprint? I think you'll find that they're fairly equal during the short, meaningless races, but when the chips are down, I'd have to give the edge to the calculator. THey're both inanimate, so that makes deciding tough.  —  Ryfun

What the hell is an Abucus?  —  Ranch King 

abacus! watched a guy on tv long ago, beat the guy with a calculator.  —  Anonymous

Depends on who's using it...but i hear a skilled abacitician( that how you spell it ) could beat a cal ca later anyday of the week..  —  Lord Feldo

Absolutly an abacus... have you seen those little suckers roll accross the floor. Unless of course you count the TI-81 calculator which got itself hurled from the top of the science library at UC Santa Cruz after losing it's programing during a test....  —  Adeptio

if you are an american teenager, the calculator...if you had a real education, like the japanese, chinese, or tiger woods...then maybe the abacus.  —  The Ignition Missionary

With a bit of greasing up I think the abacus would win.(over what distance are we talking about anyway)  —  labrat

If you can take the abacus from my hand...  —  Taotaejay

 

3)  Ramanujian vs. Deep Blue in a battle to the death: who'd win?    

Answer: Deep Blue.  Ramanujian would take the obvious move of simply unplugging Deep Blue, but ’Blue would have thought this out sixteen moves ahead and have traps set around the outlet.  Deep Blue in two turns.

Best Answers:

Who cares? Zappa would still kick their candy asses.  —  Bruddah Max

Ramanujian. Deep Blue is not useful for battling, only for playing chess..  —  St. Marc

Hokay, this seems easy, because though Deep Blue bested Kasparov once (why does no one mention the fact that they've split their lifetime series 1-1?!?!? Drives me nuts that everyone walks around saying that Deep Blue beat Kasparov, because, while it did, it has also lost to Kasparov before. That makes them even, in my book. There needs to be a rubber match!), Deep Blue hasn't attained consciousness, and thus cannot be said to "live," which is a prerequisite for death. Deep Blue can't die since it doesn't live.  —  Ryfun

If it were chess, Deep Blue.  —  Ranch King 

lets see tapping fingers while humming "American pie" saint's favorite. he sings it constantly :)~ OK OK Deep Blue.. thats my answer  —  Anonymous

Deep Blue..he'd just..short circuit a useless part and electrocute someone..  —  Lord Feldo

Ramanujian. Blue has used up it's run of luck by being people's favorite color. Sheesh. what a waste.  —  Adeptio

i have absolutley no idea what you are talking about. so i would guess rammerjammer, just cuz of the name.  —  The Ignition Missionary

Both would,because iy's the taking part that counts  —  labrat

Deep Blue hacks into NORAD and nukes the world (just like the WOPR).  —  Taotaejay

 

Science     

 

1)  What is the only venomous mammal?   

Answer: The Platypus.  Males have a spike on their hind legs that has a mild toxin.  Non-lethal, though it will make a man sick.  Scientists are not sure what the actual use of the spike is.  Then again, they are not sure what the actual use of the platypus is, either...

Best Answers:

duckbilled platypus  —  Cinder

The platypus. They are also the only egg-laying mammal.  —  Bruddah Max

The platypus, assuming you buy that it's a mammal and not, as any SIMPLETON would observe if not indoctrinated otherwise when too young to resist, a species of space alien..  —  St. Marc

The unabashedly-evil male duck-billed Platypus. Though I also think some shrews are, and I know several Gumbys (not to be confused with the pizza place, though I suppose those are venomous, too. Hell, I always thought Gumby's pizza was great, because if you could survive ten of them, they'd give you another one free. What the hell is that? If you shoot someone ten times and they happen to survive, do you shoot them again to show your appreciation? What the hell was it called again? The "This one'll do it, for sure" Special?) are thought to be.  —  Ryfun

Squid?  —  Ranch King 

The duck billed platypus  —  Anonymous

Motherfucking Platypi and shit!  —  Lord Feldo

My own personal hero the platypus. What other creature breaks as many other rules? It deserves it's own classification.  —  Adeptio

that's gotta be the vampyre...i don't think they lay eggs, and they have hair, too...  —  The Ignition Missionary

My mother  —  labrat

Women  —  Taotaejay

 

2)  What is the largest moon in our solar system?   

Answer:  Although many would say Reverend Sun Yung Moon’s ego, for physical bodies it’s Jupiter’s moon Ganymede.  With a diameter of 3,270 miles, it is actually larger than Mercury and Pluto.

Best Answers:

Ganymede with a diameter of 3,269 miles.  —  Cinder

Titan, a moon of Saturn. The smallest (much more interesting) is Phobos, a small hunk of rock several miles across orbiting Mars.  —  Bruddah Max

Ganymede, except for that one you can't see..  —  St. Marc

You know, I going to go wacky here and say Jupiter. I'm going to say this...why the hell am I going to say this? Oh, um, okay, how's this? All of the planets of the solar system are satellites of the sun, thus they are moons. The largest of those mooons would be Jupiter. You've gotta admit, that's pretty damned good, even if it IS wrong.  —  Ryfun

I don't know.  —  Ranch King 

Jupiter's moon Ganymede the diameter of 3,270 miles.  —  Anonymous

Ugh..one of jupiters...Io..or..something..who knows..not me.  —  Lord Feldo

Ganymede.  —  Adeptio

i believe his name is big jim-the fattest man in the world...  —  The Ignition Missionary

The one you see in Mauritius. That bastard is massive  —  labrat

Ganymede  —  Taotaejay

 

3)  What is the strongest muscle in the human body?     

Answer: The tongue. Although the heart is actually strong enough to pump blood in a jet three stories high (per squirt,) the tongue, pound per pound, is still stronger.  Makes ya want to get your significant other’s pierced, don’t it...  J

Best Answers:

The strongest muscle in the body is the masseter,you use it to bite with. people sometimes claim the heart is the "strongest" because it does more work over a lifetime then any other muscle, and it's almost impossible to fatigue. Another muscle often mentioned is the tongue, although I don't know why—it works almost constantly (at least in some people) hehe, but generates little force and does fatigue. Just try sticking it out and wiggling it up and down for five minutes, you'll see. hahahahaha maybe I'll get a point in one of these answers.  —  Cinder

The heart.  —  Bruddah Max

Define "strongest." The one that can generate the most force is the jaw muscle, specifically the masseter muscles. However, the heart is the hardest-working - it rests only between beats for your entire lifetime..  —  St. Marc

The masseter. ANd if you have your jaw removed, it's massetectomy.  —  Ryfun

Heart  —  Ranch King 

Tongue God knows you have a good strong tongue to read Dr.Seuss out loud. also to tie a cherry stem :) hummm i can think of a few other things you need a good strong tongue for.  —  Anonymous

The tongue..and damn should i know it.  —  Lord Feldo

They want you to believe it is the heart, but I think that's part of the whole conspiracy.  —  Adeptio

the tongue, just ask the ladies...  —  The Ignition Missionary

The one that was grilled for hours before serving. Damn near broke my tooth.  —  labrat

I know it should be heart, but I'm going to have to say Viagra aided penis!  —  Taotaejay

 

 

English     

 

1)  What is the only 5-part trilogy in Literature?    

Answer: The Hitchhiker’s Trilogy, by Douglas Adams.  Yes, 5-book trilogy (hey, if Trinitarian Christians can say 3=1, then why not 5=3?!?)  The series contains Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, The Restaurant at the End of the Universe, Life, the Universe, and Everything, So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish, and Mostly Harmless.  It is rumored Adams was working on a sixth book to the trilogy before his death, but this in unconfirmed (and probably for the best, since both So Long and Mostly Harmless sucked...)

Best Answers:

The "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" series by Douglas Adams. 1) "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy", 2) "The Restaurant at the End of the Universe", 3) "Life, the Universe, and Everything", 4) "So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish", and 5) "Mostly Harmless".  —  Bruddah Max

The Hitchhiker's Guide trilogy..  —  St. Marc

The Hitchhiker's trilogy (though, at the risk of sounding a bit blasphemous, it should have remained a 3-part trilogy. WIth Dougie's passing earlier this year, it will, at least, remain a 5-part trilogy).  —  Ryfun

How can there be a five part trilogy. Trilogy means 3!  —  Ranch King 

This would be the "Hitchhiker's" yea unhuh yep that's it I just know it!!!  —  Anonymous

Douglas Adams..Hitchikers guide..not only that..but it has one other kinda of made one..Young Zaphod plays it Safe..which doesn't quite fit in..but oh well.  —  Lord Feldo

Five part Trilogy? I dunno, but the person who wrote it made a good choice by going into Literature instead of Math.  —  Adeptio

The Darksword trilogy...i may be wrong, but i have four of them...it wouldn't surprise me if they made five...heck, what's a triology, if not more than three!  —  The Ignition Missionary

Kinda defeats the whole 'trilogy' thing doesn't it?  —  labrat

Doug Adams would know.  —  Taotaejay

 

2)  Who buttled for Bertie Wooster?

Answer: Reginald Jeeves, the archetypal English butler and gentleman's gentleman of P. D. Wodehouse’s works.  Worth reading, or (for the literary impaired) renting on video.

Best Answers:

my Man Jeeves  —  Cinder

That would be Jeeves - and I only know that because I searched once to find out where "Ask Jeeves" got the name.  —  Bruddah Max

Jeeves..  —  St. Marc

I don't know. I'll have to Ask Jeeves.  —  Ryfun

I give up.  —  Ranch King 

My Man Jeeve Reginald Jeeve.  —  Anonymous

hah..so early..i dunno..The jones'? Jeeves?  —  Lord Feldo

Jeeves. The Gentleman's Gentleman.  —  Adeptio

i don't even want to answer this question.  —  The Ignition Missionary

Jeeves, after he quit Richie Rich  —  labrat

Jeeves  —  Taotaejay

 

 

3)  What Doctor lived in a house on Puddleby-on-the-Marsh and had a pet duck named Dab Dab?    

Answer: Dr. John Dolittle. Long before Eddie Murphy messed things up, it was kind of a cute story by Hugh Lofting

Best Answers:

Tell me.  —  Cinder

Why, Doctor Doolittle, of course. And not the stupid-ass Eddie Murphy remake guy.  —  Bruddah Max

Dr. Doolittle..  —  St. Marc

Doctor Doolittle. Could they adapt a book poorly any more times than this one?  —  Ryfun

Doo Little.  —  Ranch King 

If we could talk to the animals just imagine it....Dr.Dolittle  —  Anonymous

DOolittes!! He was the man yo! He was one mad phat gangsta! That boy get's shout-outs from me anytime..anyywhere..!  —  Lord Feldo

Doctor Dolittle. The Original. There should have never been any other.  —  Adeptio

mine...and the drugs were always great..."come here Dab-Dab!"  —  The Ignition Missionary

Doolittle, and I'm sure he took some flack from the duck for that name.  —  labrat

I don't think he did a whole lot.  —  Taotaejay

 

bonus round:     

 

Name a cheese that was first created in America. 

Answer:  According to www.cheese.com, the following are native to the United States: American Cheese, Bergere Bleue, Brick, Capriole Banon, Colby, Cold Pack, Cougar Gold, Crowley, Cypress Grove Chevre, Dry Jack, Fresh Jack, Grafton Village Cheddar, Hubbardston Blue Cow,  Idaho Goatster, Maytag Blue, Monterey Jack, Monterey Jack Dry, Peekskill Pyramid, Plymouth Cheese, Shelburne Cheddar, Sonoma Jack, Swiss, Texas Goat Cheese, and Tillamook Cheddar.  The stumper here (to me, at least) is “Swiss”.  With a name like that, you’d think it would be from, well, Switzerland, but looking into it I found that it is indeed a domestic dairy.  Go figure.  Anyway, I suspect the list is incomplete, as Velveeta isn’t on it.  I’m also surprised Pepper Jack isn’t on the list, though I could not independently confirm this...

Best Answers:

Fennimore cheese  —  Cinder

Ok, the obvious choice would be American, but that isn't it. Speculation continues over whether Monterey Jack was first created in America, but I know Brick cheese was definitely created in America.  —  Bruddah Max

Cheez Whiz.  —  St. Marc

"The call of the Alpinhorn echoes across the Danskin peninsula, the heart of Denmark's cheese belt, signaling to all those with nothing better to do the start of Scandinavia's happiest tradition, the Chelgenjost, or cheese festival, or Julgenvelk." I have no idea about the spelling there. 

For starters, I don't know if it's acceptable or not, but Velveeta is a damned cheese all its own. It counts. It qualifies. It's the SPAM of cheeses. American Dairy Association (the only people who I think keep up with that sort of thing) says Monterrey Jack was created in California, so I suppose that's a good answer. — Ryfun

Velveeta.  —  Ranch King 

Dayummmmm lots of cheese! where to start. American ,Bergere Bleue,Brick, you have the list. it goes on and on!  —  Anonymous

..Brick..American..Monterary Jack i think..some kind of goat cheeses too.  —  Lord Feldo

Monteray Jack. Scraped from the bottoms of sailor's feet after dropping their fish off at Cannary Row.  —  Adeptio

monterey jack...it could only be created here with a stupid backwoods name like 'monterey jack'  —  The Ignition Missionary

Scream 1,2 and 3  —  labrat

Bree...I mean American.  —  Taotaejay

 

 

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