Trivia 2/27/07

(Swipe cursor for answers)

1. What is a group of owls called?
   Parliament, stare, wisdom, study
2. After graduating from Magdalen College, Oxford in 1878, Oscar Wilde returned to Dublin where he met and fell in love with (and some sources say was betrothed to) Florence Balcombe, who would later marry what other Irish writer?
   Bram Stoker
3. The International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling allows what two exemptions?
   Scientific research and aboriginal subsistence
   Bonus: What countries continue commercial whaling?
   Norway, Iceland
4. Chaim Witz is the real name of what rock group member?
   Gene Simmons
5. What is the tallest man-made structure on earth?
   KVLY_TV mast - Blanchard, ND, (529 m, 2063 ft)
6. Before becoming a bestselling novelist and screenwriter, author Neil Gaiman made his name writing what comic book that ran for 75 issues between 1988 and 1996?
   Sandman
   Bonus: Name the seven members of the Endless family.
   Dream, Delirium, Destruction, Death, Destiny, Desire, Despair
7. How many species of Pacific salmon are there?
   6 (…or 7 with steelhead)
   Bonus: Name them
   Masu (Oncorhynchus masu) "cherry"
   Chinook (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) "king, tyee, spring salmon, quinnat, tule, or blackmouth"
   Chum (Oncorhynchus keta) “dog or calico"
   Coho (Oncorhynchus kisutch) "silver"
   Pink (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) "humpie or humpback"
   Sockeye (Oncorhynchus nerka) "red, blueback, silver trout, kokanee"
   … or 7 with Steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) "rainbow"
   Bonus 2: What is their genus?
   Oncorhynchus
8. Who wrote the song "A Boy Named Sue?"
   Shel Silverstein
9. Who was the first member of the royal family to face criminal charges since King Charles I was charged with treason in 1649?
   The Princess Anne, Princess Royal (pleaded guilty to driving at 93 mph on a dual carriageway, fined £400 by Cheltenham Magistrates' Court and was given five points on her driving license)
10. The griffin, a mythic beast, shares the characteristics of what real animals?
    Lion, eagle, (snake, horse)
11. What classic car went up for auction today, Lot 241 at Coy's of Kensignton?
    1966 Batmobile
12. The 1974 court case U.S. v. Washington, better known as the "Boldt Decision," was a controversial case regarding what?
    Tribal fishing rights
    What was the final ruling?
    50% all WA salmon harvest granted to tribal members (who signed treaties in 1850s)
13. Metallica’s newest song "Ecstasy of Gold" is an instrumental cover tune which opened all of their concerts for the last 20 years, and appears on a new tribute album to what soundtrack composer?
    Ennio Morricone
    Bonus: To what film does this song belong?
    The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
14. Which of the following is not a fictional sport in Aldous Huxley’s novel Brave New World.
    a) Centrifugal Bumble Puppy
    b) Electro-Magnetic Golf
    c) Escalator Squash
    d) Upside-down Velcro Bocci***
    e) Riemann Surface Tennis
    d
15. What is the name of the ESA spacefraft that flew by Mars today on its way to rendezvous with Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko in 2014?
    Rosetta

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