Hot metal

“Misch metal” a substance that ignites when scratched, is widely used in the manufacture of what commonplace object?

A) Cigarette lighters
B) Smoke detectors
C) Spark plugs
D) Theatrical lights

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The art of detection

Which American author is generally regarded as the inventor of modern detective fiction?

A) Nathaniel Hawthorne
B) Herman Melville
C) Edgar Allan Poe
D) Mark Twain

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Fromage in flight

Which popular English pastime involves throwing a “cheese”?

A) Darts
B) Morris dancing
C) Skittles
D) Toad in the hole

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Intellectual property

To whom was awarded the first patent for a technical invention?

A) Christiaan Huygens, mathematician and engineer
B) Filippo Brunelleschi, architect and engineer
C) Leonardo da Vinci, artist and inventor
D) Sir Christopher Wren, architect and scientist

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Odin’s odd horse

As befits a beast belonging to the greatest of the Norse gods, Odin’s horse Sleipnir had an unusual feature. What was it?

A) Eight legs
B) Mane of fire
C) Neigh like a thousand trumpets
D) Two heads

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First violin

Which composer, performer and teacher is generally regarded as the first great violinist?

A) Arcangelo Corelli
B) Niccolo Paganini
C) Alessandro Scarlatti
D) Antonio Vivaldi

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Otiose

What is the meaning of the adjective otiose?

A) Disgusting
B) Having large ears
C) Serving no purpose
D) Unmarried

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Ahead of the crowd

The earliest known European settlement in the Americas is:

A) L’Anse aux Meadows, Newfoundland
B) Machu Pichu, Peru
C) Navidad, Hispaniola (now Haiti)
D) Provincetown, Massachusetts

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Whence canasta?

When and where did the popular card game canasta originate?

A) 14th century Persia
B) 16th century Spain
C) 18th century California
D) 20th century Uruguay

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Drouthy neebors

Tam O’Shanter, by Scots poet Robert Burns, begins with the lines, “When chapman billies leave the street, And drouthy neebors neebors meet”. “Chapman billies” are pedlars, but what does “drouthy” mean?

A) Drowsy
B) Quarrelsome
C) Thirsty
D) Tipsy

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