General Trivia Flashcards Preview

Mr. B's General Knowledge Trivia (clues from NPR Wait Wait, Jeopardy!, and some I made up myself) > General Trivia > Flashcards

Flashcards in General Trivia Deck (198)
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1
Q

Who discovered first that there were actually 365 1/4 days in a solar year?

A

Julius Caesar

2
Q

Lent is a period of 40 days that come before what holiday?

A

Easter

3
Q

What year did Leonardo DeCaprio win his first Oscar Award for best actor?

A

2016

4
Q

What years was George Washington president?

A

1789-1797

5
Q

Who became president after Abraham Lincoln was assassinated?

A

Andrew Johnson

6
Q

Thimphu, Bhutan, is the only world capital without a single what?

A

Traffic signal

7
Q

Brazil’s capital city, Brasilia, was designed to look like what on a map?

A

An airplane

8
Q

The first hit rap song was released in 1979. Was it sung by Sugarhill Gang or Chubby Checker?

A

Sugar Hill Gang

9
Q

Who wrote the poems in A Light in the Attic and Where the Sidewalk Ends?

A

Shel Silverstein

10
Q

A major tennis stadium in New York is named after which African American tennis player?

A

Arthur Ashe

11
Q

What mighty river carved the Grand Canyon?

A

The Colorado River

12
Q

Only one of our states was ruled by kings and queens in its past. Name the state.

A

Hawaii

13
Q

The Great Lakes form part of our border with Canada. Name all five of them.

A

Huron, Ontario, Michigan Erie and Superior

14
Q

In the early 1900’s, his amazing feats of magic made him an international celebrity. Who was he?

A

Harry Houdini (One of America’s greatest magicians, he began his career as a trapeze performer.)

15
Q

What did President Jefferson want his explorers to find?

A

A way to the Pacific Ocean

16
Q

What was the starting point of Lewis and Clark’s trip?

A

St. Louis, Missouri (Gateway Arch)

17
Q

What country ruled the colonies before the American Revolution?

A

England

18
Q

What is the oldest European community in the United States?

A

St. Augustine

19
Q

What is the capital of Uruguay?

A

Montevideo

20
Q

The Hero Two Doors Down is a book by Sharon Robinson about this baseball hero (number 42)

A

Jackie Robinson

21
Q

What is the capital of Russia?

A

Moscow

22
Q

What publishing company published books such as Magic Bunny and Harry Potter?

A

Scholastic

23
Q

What is the capital of Peru?

A

Lima

24
Q

What is the capital of Paraguay?

A

Asuncion

25
Q

What is a group of dolphins called?

A

a pod

26
Q

What city is known as the movie capital of the world?

A

Hollywood, California

27
Q

Where can you find the largest/tallest living things on earth?

A

Sequoia National Park or Muir Woods National Park or any park in California with Redwood trees

28
Q

What natural disaster caused the Pinnacles National Park landform?

A

Volcano eruption

29
Q

What is the major fault in California?

A

San Andreas

30
Q

What does a seismometer measure?

A

earthquakes

31
Q

What state comes alphabetically after Georgia?

A

Hawaii

32
Q

The inventor of the first window wipers for a car was….

A

Mary Anderson

33
Q

Mary Anderson invented these in 1903 to wipe off snow or rain.

A

windshield wipers

34
Q

A Scandinavian first name for the last name Rockne (football coach)

A

Knute

35
Q

Knute Rockne lost just 12, but won one for the Gipper and 104 more at this school.

A

Notre Dame

36
Q

“Rudy” and “Knute Rockne, All American” are both films that focus on the football team nicknamed this.

A

The Fighting Irish

37
Q

Girls in this country display valuable dolls that are family heirlooms on Hina-Matsuri.

A

Japan

38
Q

Hina-Matsuri (Japanese Peach Festival) is on this day.

A

March 3

39
Q

Where were the 1988 Olympics held?

A

Seoul, South Korea

40
Q

Who won the 1984 and 1988 Men’s Platform Diving at the olympics?

A

Greg Louganis

41
Q

What were the first words Alexander Graham Bell said to his assistant on his telephone?

A

Watson, come here. I want you.

42
Q

Lent is a time of prayer and fasting for what religion?

A

Christian

43
Q

What state will you find the Watts Towers?

A

California

44
Q

What is the sticky nickname for someone from Fayetteville or Charlotte, North Carolina?

A

Tar Heel

45
Q

(Animals in Kid’s Books)Charlotte, who lives in the rafters above Wilbur’s pen, is one of these

A

a Spider

46
Q

(Mashed-Up Book Titles) Charlotte’s Little

A

Charlotte’s Web and Stuart Little

47
Q

A young girl named Fern saves a pig from certain death in this E.B. White novel

A

Charlotte’s Web

48
Q

A real trumpet is used by E.B. White’s title fowl in the story called “The Trumpet of” this bird

A

the swan

49
Q

This “Stuart Little” author also co-wrote the handbook “The Elements of Style”

A

E.B. White

50
Q

What famous person is Joanne Kathleen?

A

JK Rowling

51
Q

What famous author is lesser known by Elwyn Brooks?

A

E.B. White

52
Q

Which President is pictured on the 1 dollar bill?

A

George Washington

53
Q

If you get an email from someone you don’t know what’s the best thing to do?

A

ignore it or delete it

54
Q

What fruit can you dry to make prunes?

A

plums

55
Q

In the Aesop’s fable The Hare and the Tortoise,who wins the race?

A

the tortoise

56
Q

In a virtual world, you interact with a place online.True or False?

A

true

57
Q

“Honest” adopted name of abolitionist Isabella Baumfree

A

Sojourner Truth

58
Q

Born a slave around 1797, she became famous as a preacher, abolitionist and women’s rights activist.

A

Sojourner Truth

59
Q

Sojourner Truth died in her house on College Street in the “cereal” city

A

Battle Creek, Michigan

60
Q

This monument in St. Louis gets its name from the city’s role as one “to the West”

A

The Gateway Arch

61
Q

What state quarter coin has Lewis and Clark paddling in a canoe with the Gateway Arch in the background?

A

Missouri

62
Q

What movie does a kid find a egg that turns into a sea monster

A

water horse

63
Q

Who made more 3 pointers in their career? Curry or Lebron

A

Steph Curry

64
Q

On March 12th, 1912 Juliette Gordon Low held the first one of these.

A

Girl Scout troop meeting.

65
Q

What state was the first Girl Scout meeting held?

A

Georgia

65
Q

What is the slogan of the Girl Scouts?

A

Do a good turn daily.

66
Q

The Girl Guides in Canada are similar to what group in America?

A

Girl Scouts

67
Q

What is the capital city of Arkansas?

A

Little Rock

68
Q

What month is National Wildlife Week celebrated?

A

March

69
Q

in 1970 what country held the FIFA world cup?

A

Mexico

70
Q

1060 W. Addison is the address of this landmark of the United States and sporting venue.

A

Wrigley’s field

71
Q

This monument in St. Louis gets its name from the city’s role as one “to the west”

A

The Gateway Arch

72
Q

What baseball player won the home run derby in 2014?

A

Yoenis Cespedes

73
Q

What does NASA stand for?

A

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

74
Q

What actor stars in Akeelah and the Bee as a spelling coach for Akeelah?

A

Lawrence Fishbourne

75
Q

Who held the first Girl Scout troop meeting on March 12, 1912.

A

Juliette Gordon Low

76
Q

The only major city on Route 66 in Texas’ upper panhandle; its attractions include Taylor’s Texaco station.

A

Amarillo

77
Q

This Texas port was named for a Roman Catholic feast day celebrating the body of the Savior

A

Corpus Christi

78
Q

Texans celebrate San Jacinto Day on April 21 to honor this general’s defeat of Santa Anna in 1836.

A

Sam Houston

79
Q

Aleut is spoken in Alaska and also on this country’s Bering Island.

A

Russia

80
Q

The coldest recorded winter temperature in the U.S. was the Jan. 1971 temp of -80 at Prospect Creek Camp in this state.

A

Alaska

81
Q

Susan Butcher is the only woman to have won this Alaskan sled-dog race 4 times.

A

Iditarod

82
Q

Purim celebrates her rescue of her people from a massacre.

A

Esther

83
Q

Around what year was the Coliseum in Rome built?

A

70 AD

84
Q

What country is landlocked? Paraguay or Uruguay?

A

Paraguay

85
Q

This bear is named for a train station and arrives in England as a stowaway from South America.

A

Paddington

86
Q

“If you Give a” child this 1985 Laura Numeroff book, he’s liable to ask for another

A

If you Give a Mouse a Cookie

87
Q

A Swedish award for adolescent and children’s literature is named for this “Pippi Longstocking” author

A

Astrid Lindgren

88
Q

Sally and her brother were looking out the window on a rainy day when they saw him standing on a doormat

A

the Cat in the Hat

89
Q

“Mowgli’s Brothers” is the first story in this 1894 collection

A

The Jungle Book

90
Q

A classic book by George Selden tells of this noisy insect “in Times Square”

A

The Cricket

91
Q

A young rabbit gets ready for bed in this classic by Margaret Wise Brown

A

Goodnight Moon

92
Q

In this Hans Christian Andersen story, a child observes, “He has got nothing on at all!”

A

The Emperor’s New Clothes

93
Q

Dororthy’s pal in “The Wizard of Oz” who wiped his eyes with his tail so often that “it became quite wet”

A

Cowardly Lion

94
Q

The first character Alice meets in Wonderland, he wears a waistcoat and a pocket watch.

A

The White Rabbit

95
Q

Jim Hawkins, the Hispaniola’s cabin boy, narrates this Robert Louis Stevenson tale

A

Treasure Island

96
Q

Audrey Wood and David Shannon’s new book about this great big logger introduces his wife and kids.

A

Paul Bunyon

97
Q

Stan & Jan Berenstain have written a seris of books about a family of these title animals

A

The Berenstain Bears

98
Q

Cavatica is the last name of the title character of this 1952 E.B. White novel

A

Charlotte’s Web

99
Q

In Charlotte’s Web, Templeton is this kind of animal

A

rat

100
Q

She didn’t start writing her “Little House” novels until she was in her 60’s

A

Laura Ingalls Wilder

101
Q

He wrote 14 books about Oz, and some short stories too

A

L. Frank Baum

102
Q

Willie Wonka owned the world’s most famous one

A

Chocolate Factory

103
Q

Title character who turned out to be a ventriloquist from Omaha

A

The Wizard of Oz

104
Q

South of the Great Pyramid of Giza is this limestone sculpture, part man, part lion

A

the Sphinx

105
Q

It’s obstructing the flow of the Colorado River, creating Lake Mead

A

the Hoover Dam

106
Q

In April 1990 about a million people gathered in Central Park to celebrate the 20th anniversary of this observance

A

Earth Day

107
Q

The annual Earth Day celebration takes place during this season

A

Spring

108
Q

What is the Grand Canyon State?

A

Arizona

109
Q

What state is the Beaver State?

A

Oregon

110
Q

What state is the Centennial State?

A

Colorado

111
Q

What state is the Yellowhammer State?

A

Alabama

112
Q

What state is the Prairie State?

A

Illinois

113
Q

What state is the Tar Heel State?

A

North Carolina

114
Q

What state is the Pine Tree State?

A

Maine

115
Q

What state is nicknamed the Quaker State?

A

Pennsylvania

116
Q

What state is known as the Hawkeye State?

A

Iowa

117
Q

What state is known as the Goober state?

A

Georgia

118
Q

What state is known as the Land of 10,000 Lakes?

A

Minnesota

119
Q

What state is known as the Old Line State?

A

Maryland

120
Q

During Passover, the Jewish people eat this bread.

A

matzo (pronounced: maht-zuh)

121
Q

Unleavened bread means that there is no this and so the bread does not rise.

A

yeast

122
Q

According to Jewish tradition, Passover remembers the time the Pharaoh of Egypt would not free these people.

A

Jews

123
Q

On the first evening of Passover, a special meal called this is prepared.

A

seder (pronounced say-der)

124
Q

Shavu’ot, or Feast of Weeks, is a Jewish holiday celebrated 7 weeks after this festival.

A

Passover

125
Q

Which U.S. President first spoke of a “government of the people, by the people, for the people”?

A

Abraham Lincoln (in his Gettysburg Address of 1863)

126
Q

In Longfellow’s famous poem, who lived by the shining Big-Sea-Water?

A

Hiawatha (a legendary Native American chief who promoted peace between his people and the settlers from Europe)

127
Q

Name the valley where George Washington’s army spent the long, hard winter of 1777-78.

A

Valley Forge (in Pennsylvania)

128
Q

Who wrote the classic American folk song “This Land is Your Land”?

A

Woody Guthrie (widely considered to be America’s troubadour)

129
Q

Which music genre originated in the U.S. reggae, jazz or ballads?

A

jazz (It originated in the early 20th century in southern African American communities.)

130
Q

The first hit rap song was released in 1979. Who was it sung by?

A

Sugarhill Gang

131
Q

What do we call the religious songs that were composed and sung by African American slaves?

A

spirituals

132
Q

Oklahoma’s state flying mammal, the Mexican free-tailed bat, bites this Oregon State and Oregon State University animal.

A

Beaver

133
Q

The largest living organism is said to be a a variety of this fungus that covers 2,200 acres in an Oregon forest

A

a mushroom

134
Q

What is the deepest lake in Oregon?

A

Crater Lake (1,943 feet deep)

135
Q

Nike was founded by University of Oregon track coach Bill Bowermand and this runner of his

A

Phil Knight

136
Q

On April 1, 1996 newspaper readers were surprised to learn that Taco Bell had bought this historic bell; April Fool’s!

A

Liberty Bell

137
Q

One knows that Easter falls on this date in 2018, so you might have to watch out for rotten eggs left as a joke.

A

April 1/April Fool’s Day

138
Q

The “core” of this computer company goes back to its founding, April 1, 1976.

A

Apple Computer

139
Q

SLANG:

An “explosive” way to jump into a picture right before it’s taken

A

photobomb

140
Q

What is the official language of Brazil?

A

Portuguese

141
Q

What is the official language of Bolivia?

A

Spanish

142
Q

Whats the official language of Kuwait?

A

Arabic

143
Q

What is the official langauge of Haiti?

A

French

144
Q

What is the official language of Liberia?

A

English

145
Q

LeBron James led this team to back to back NBA titles in 2012 and 2013.

A

the Miami Heat

146
Q

“David Copperfield” is one of this British author’s classic novels.

A

Charles Dickens

147
Q

In a Victor Hugo novel, Quasimodo is the hunchback bell ringer at this Paris cathedral.

A

Notre Dame

148
Q

This villain from “Sleeping Beauty” got her own movie in 2014, with Angelina Jolie in the title role

A

Maleficent

149
Q

The latest movie about these mutants is “Days of Future Past”; what does that even mean?

A

X-Men

150
Q

Air racer Dusty joins a helicopter named Blade Ranger in this animated movie subtitled “Fire and Rescue”

A

Planes

151
Q

“Million Dollar Arm” tells the true story of an agent who goes to this country to recruit cricket bowlers to play baseball.

A

India

152
Q

This 800-mile-long fracture in earth’s crust runs close to San Jose and Palm Springs and is totally our fault.

A

San Andreas

153
Q

Who is the author of Bad Kitty Goes to the Vet?

A

Nick Bruel

154
Q

Who wrote the Judy Moody series books and the Stink series books?

A

Megan McDonald

155
Q

Barthelemy Thimmonier, an early maker of these machines, saw them smashed by a mob of angry tailors.

A

Sweing Machines

156
Q

Elias Howe and Isaac Singer made these type of new machines in the 1800’s.

A

Sewing machines

157
Q

Rainy Songs - She sang, “Now that it’s raining more than ever… you can stand under my umbrella… ella, ella, eh eh eh”

A

Rihanna

158
Q

The British call this a brolly. It’s one of these-don’t leave home without it on a rainy day!

A

umbrella

159
Q

On April 10, 1866 the ASPCA was founded. What does it stand for? Go pet your dog and give a snack!

A

American Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals

160
Q

Edwin Perkins made this drink in 1927.

A

Kool-Aid

161
Q

There was a candy 2,000 years ago that was made in Egypt. What type of candy was it?

A

marshmallow

162
Q

Fruit Smack was sold in little glass bottles for people to drink. What is it called today?

A

Kool-Aid

163
Q

How many players at once can be on the ice during a game of ice hockey?

A

6 (the goalie, the center, two defense players, and two forwards.

164
Q

In what sport can you find the Islanders, Blues and the Black Hawks professional teams playing?

A

Ice Hockey

165
Q

What children’s author wrote Ramona the Pest?

A

Beverly Cleary

166
Q

The Mouse and the Motorcycle is a famous book written by this author.

A

Beverly Cleary

167
Q

The first Arbor Day was held in Nebraska in this month in 1872.

A

April

168
Q

At first, Anna M. Jarvis encouraged the idea of this day in the United States in May of 1905.

A

Mother’s Day

169
Q

In old England, this day, is on the fourth Sunday in Lent. Don’t forget to call!

A

Mothering Sunday (Mother’s Day)

170
Q

In 1914 President Wilson proclaimed the first national this in May.

A

Mother’s Day

171
Q

Over 1,000 feet long, the USS Harry S. Truman is one of these vessels like the USS Hornet.

A

An aircraft carrier

172
Q

In 1911 Eugene Ely made the first airplane landing on one of these, the USS Pennsylvania

A

A ship

173
Q

The transporter: An aircraft carrier is named for this North Carolina town where history was made in 1903.

A

Kittyhawk

174
Q

These kinds of ships include Kitty Hawk, Enterprise, Nimitz and the USS Hornet

A

aircraft carriers

175
Q

Aircraft carriers named for stinging insects include the USS Wasp and this one, now a museum

A

The Hornet

176
Q

Among sites celebrating the 30th anniversary of this in 1999 was the USS Hornet, the recovery ship.

A

the Apollo 11 mission

177
Q

Ships: On July 24, 1969 the USS Hornet was in the Pacific waiting for these men

A

The crew of Apollo 11 (Armstrong, Aldrin and Collins)

178
Q

In 1592 he left Pisa to become a professor of mathematics at Padua. “G”whiz!

A

Galileo

179
Q

On the runway in Pisa at night, look at the stars as you leave the airport named for this 17th c. Italian astronomer.

A

Galileo

180
Q

This Italian who gave us the law of falling bodies was put on trial in 1633 for supporting the heliocentric model of the universe.

A

Galileo

181
Q

Born in this city, Galileo is said to have dropped objects of various weights from atop its famed landmark.

A

Pisa

182
Q

Leonardo da Vinci painted this fresco in the church of the Santa Maria Delle Grazie in Milan.

A

The Last Supper

183
Q

Truly the ultimate Renaissance man, he died in France on May 2, 1519 after a few artworks, inventions and stuff.

A

Leonardo Da Vinci

184
Q

Leonardo da Vinci was born in 1452 near this tiny town in Toscana. Don’t think too hard!

A

Vinci

185
Q

Leonardo’s “The Last Supper” is painted on the wall of a monastery in this northern Italian city.

A

Milan

186
Q

This Renaissance man’s invention of the maritime lock allowed Milan to link with the Po River via a canal system.

A

Da Vinci

187
Q

Disney Sidekick: In “Mulan”, Mushu is one of these legendary creatures.

A

A dragon

188
Q

Cartoon Voice: Before his Donkey days, this funny guy voiced Mushu the dragon in “Mulan”

A

Eddie Murphy

189
Q

At 17, this ex-Mousketeer sang “Reflection” on the soundtrack for “Mulan”.

A

Christina Aguilera

190
Q

Disney Film Character” She joins the Chinese army to protect her father and ends up a hero.

A

Mulan

191
Q

The Cubists were influenced by this great Post-Impressionist, whose water colors landscapes were made famous.

A

Paul Cezanne

192
Q

In 1872 this Frenchman became a dad, later the father of modern art.

A

Paul Cezanne

193
Q

(Painters and Paintings) - In the late 1800’s this Frenchman painted a feast of still life’s: “White Plate of Cherries”, “With Aplles” and “With Onions”

A

Paul Cezanne

194
Q

(Art) Cezanne used this style in the 1870’s but found it mushy: he wanted to make it “solid and durable”

A

Impressionism

195
Q

He’s the French Postimpressionist who painted “Mont Sainte-Victoire” and “The Card Players”

A

Paul Cezanne

196
Q

Paul Cezanne was noted for this type of painting which often depicts a bowl or basket of fruit.

A

Still life

197
Q

“V” This 10-letter word is the part you look through on your camera

A

Viewfinder