Pick n' Mix: Part EIGHTEEN Trivia Quiz

Answer: Sloth

Eremotherium is from the family of Megatheriidae, which is an extinct family of ground sloths that appeared in South America around 29 million years ago during the Late Oligocene epoch. Eremotherium appeared from this family during the Pliocene, and was prevalent across South America, Central America and North America. It is also named the "Panamerican ground sloth."

Records of the discovery of Eremotherium skeletons go back as far as 1823. Fossils of Eremotherium have been discovered between North and South America in over 130 excavation sites. Some species of Eremotherium have been more fully recovered than others, with Eremotherium sefvei only being known from one single femur being excavated in Bolivia. More of Eremotherium eomigrans has been discovered, and this species was endemic to what is now Florida. The most widely distributed of the species is Eremotherium laurillardi, with the southernmost fossil being unearthed in Southern Brazil, and the northernmost being discovered in New Jersey.

Out of all the genera in the Megatheriidae, Eremotherium was one of the most colossal in size. They were usually around 20 feet (6 m) long, around 6.5 feet (2 m) tall and weighed around 4-7 tonnes. Unlike its modern-day descendants, this sloth was closer to around the size of an elephant.

Answer: Poleramma

Poleramma is a Hindu goddess worshipped particularly in the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Shrines are constructed around villages to protect the area from disease, with worshippers believing that they are stricken with smallpox, measles, etc, when Poleramma is not receiving the appropriate amount of worship from them.

When someone is afflicted with smallpox or a similar disease, cactus leaves are left by their door. Poleramma, upon seeing this, is said to think the house is uninhabited and pass it by. Following this, a sheep or goat is tied to the leg of the bed where the bedridden ill person resides as a sacrifice for her to ensure their health.

Answer: For You

Released in 1978 by Warner Bros. Records, "For You" was recorded in Prince's (1958-2016) birthplace, Minneapolis, Minnesota. All songs were written by Prince, although songwriter Chris Moon assisted with writing two songs: "My Love Is Forever" and "Soft and Wet", the latter of the two rising to number 12 on America's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, and to number 92 on the US Billboard Hot 100.

Prince died in 2016 aged 57, of an accidental fentanyl overdose.

Answer: Domoic acid

Domoic acid is a kainate, that is, an acid that can occur naturally within seaweed, which is consumed by shellfish and other types of fish. Domoic acid is a neurotoxin when ingested by mammals and is capable of causing fatalities.

Domoic acid is particularly detrimental to the hippocampus and amygdaloid nucleus areas of the brain, causing too much calcium to flood into the cells, resulting in cell degeneration.

Answer: Peter Kenilorea

Peter Kenilorea (1943-2016) was born in Malaita Island, the main island of the Solomon Island's Malaita Province. He was of ꞌAreꞌare ethnicity, who are from the southern portion of Malaita Island. His first term was between 1978-1981 and his second term occurred between 1984-1986.

Peter Kenilorea was a founding member of the Solomon Islands United Party. The Solomon Islands became independent from Britain in 1978 and Kenilorea became the newly independent nation's first prime minister. Kenilorea had a lot to prove during his first years in office, being only 35 years old and governing a nation that typically reveres and listens to elders. The next prime minister of the country was Solomon Mamaloni.

By 1981, Kenilorea's government was ousted after a vote of no confidence, however, he was able to win back his office in 1984, winning against Solomon Mamaloni, the man who had taken his position during his first time in office.

Kenilorea is remembered as a peace maker in the Solomon Islands, and founding father of the nation. Long after he was no longer prime minister, in 2000, Kenilorea hosted peace talks in the country to get the Malaita Eagle Force and the Isatabu Freedom Movement to cease fighting each other. He was praised for showing balanced interactions with both sides. He died after becoming ill in 2016.

Answer: Ranjit Singh

Ranjit Singh (1780-1839) was the first ruler (or maharaja) of the Sikh Empire, ruling from 1801 until he died. Hailing from Sanskrit, "maharaja" can mean "king" or "prince" depending on the region and culture of India specified. Ranjit Singh was proclaimed the "Maharaja of Punjab" aged 21. He used his power to implement progression in infrastructure, and encouraged modernization of the area of Punjab. He had the Golden Temple of Amritsar, Punjab, rebuilt and renovated, as well as other temples in what is now Bihar.

Smallpox destroyed the sight of Ranjit Singh's left eye, and left him with a pockmarked face. However, he was able to overcome the illness and rise to be established as royalty in India. Ranjit's death in 1839 caused so much infighting and weakening of the Sikh Empire that the British East India Company were able to take advantage of this, starting the First Anglo-Sikh War.

A product of the variola virus, smallpox was an infectious disease, the last case of which was reported in 1977. It has since been declared eradicated. The disease featured bumps and rashes on the skin after bouts of fever and vomiting.

Answer: Huygens

Landing in 2005, the Huygens space probe is named after Christiaan Huygens, the Dutch astronomer that discovered Titan in 1655. Huygens was attached to the Cassini spacecraft, which was launched into space in 1997. Huygens was severed from Cassini on December 25 2004, landing on Titan weeks later, in 2005.

Huygens transmitted the data recorded to Cassini, which transmitted the data to Earth. The landing discovered that Titan is abundant in hydrocarbons in the form of lakes composing of ethane and methane, rivers and clouds and also an ocean with saline water.

Answer: Salonia Matidia

Salonia Matidia (68-119 AD) was the maternal niece of Roman emperor Trajan, who reigned Rome between 98-117 AD. Salonia Matidia was the only child of Trajan's elder sister, Ulpia Marciana (48 AD, died between 112-114 AD) whom Trajan had a close relationship with. Salonia Matidia's father was Roman Senator, Gaius Salonius Matidius Patruinus, who died in 78 AD.

Trajan had not conceived any children of his own, and was very close to his niece, treating Salonia as his own daughter. Trajan would often consult his niece and ask for her advice in making decisions regarding Rome. Around 81-82 AD, Salona married Lucius Vibius Sabinus, a Roman Senator, who died a year or two after their wedding. They had a daughter named Vibia Sabina (83-137 AD) who would later become the wife of Hadrian (76-138 AD) who was Trajan's successor, reigning Rome from 117-138 AD.

In 84 AD, Salonia married a Roman nobleman, Lucius Mindius, and had a child with him, Mindia Matidia, who later became a Roman noblewoman. Lucius Mindius died shortly after Mindia Matidia's birth.

Salonia's last husband was Libo Rupilius Frugi, who was a Roman Senator and ancestor of Roman emperor, Marcus Aurelius, whose daughter from a previous marriage would later become Faustina the Elder, the mother of Marcus Aurelius.

It was Salonia who retrieved Trajan's ashes when he died in 117 AD, and had them interred in Rome. When Salonia herself died shortly after in 119 AD, then-emperor, Hadrian had her deified which made her the first deified Roman woman to receive a temple wholly for her, and not one erected as the wife of a deified man.

Answer: Walter Johnson

Walter Johnson (1887-1946) was a right handed pitcher who exclusively played for the Washington Senators, a defunct baseball team which became the Minnesota Twins in 1961. His professional career spanned 21 years, from 1907-1927. He would progress to managing the Washington Senators from 1929-1932, and then managed the Cleveland Indians (now the Cleveland Guardians) from 1933-35. He is still regarded one of the most proficient baseball players in regards to shutouts.

Walter Johnson had political aspirations, and became the Republican commissioner for Montgomery County, Maryland, in 1938. He had a friendship with U.S President Calvin Coolidge. In Bethesda, Maryland, there is a school named after him, Walter Johnson High School.

Answer: Chimon Island

Over 25 islands compose the Norwalk Islands archipelago, with Chimon Island being the largest at around 60 acres (25 hectares) in area. The archipelago is located around a mile away from both Norwalk and Westport in Connecticut.

Chimon Island is a regular breeding ground for several species of birds, including egrets, ibises and herons. Because of this, only the western beach of the island is accessible to the public in order to ensure that the birds remain undisturbed.

Answer: Miyeok-guk

Traditionally, miyeok-guk is served to someone on their birthday, or to a woman who has just given birth, a tradition that started in the Goryeo State of Korea where it was noted that whales would typically eat seaweed after giving birth to their calves.

Miyeok-guk is abundant in calcium, vitamin K, iodine and iron and is also consumed to help lower cholesterol. It is common to add beef to this soup, and is one of the few soups of Korean cuisine that does not consist of spicy ingredients.

Answer: Snow White

Adriana Caselotti (1916-1997) was an Italian-American actress who was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut. She received $970 for her voice acting work in the 1937 animated Disney film, "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs."

In 1994 she was awarded the Hall of Fame award of "Disney Legend" for her voice acting as Snow White, subsequently becoming the first woman to receive this award from Disney. Walt Disney refused to allow her to do voice work on radio following the release of "Snow White and the Seven Dwarves" because he did not want to ruin the "illusion of Snow White."

Answer: Al Qasimi

The Al Qasimi royal family is one of the oldest still-operating Arabic royal families of Arabia. Ruling the emirates of Ras Al Khaimah and Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates in modern times, the dynasty purport to have the Islamic Prophet Muhammed as an ancestor. The dynasty were followers of the teachings of Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab (1703-1792), who founded Wahhabism, a philosophy of Sunni Islam. Because of this the Al Qasimi family formed an allegiance with the Emirate of Diriyah of Saudi Arabia.

Having secured military reinforcements and financial help from the Emirate of Diriyah, the Al Qasimi carried out raids on British ships that were sailing in the Persian Gulf. In 1797, the first raids were carried out under the orders of Saqr bin Rashid Al Qasimi (died 1803, year of birth unknown).

The constant raiding of British ships from the Al Qasimi led Britain to act in 1809. The Napoleonic Wars were taking place at the time, which meant the British Royal Navy could send a limited amount of troops to the Persian Gulf. Although the operation was somewhat successful in obliterating Al Qasimi ships and bases, it did not fully deter them from their activities in the Persian Gulf. However, the British now had a better understanding of the geography of the Persian Gulf, realising that their previous maps of the area were incorrectly depicting it in places. This meant they had a better understanding of how to avoid the ships of the Al Qasimi dynasty.

Answer: Stadion Georgi Asparuhov

PFC Levski Sofia was established in 1914 by a group of secondary school students who enjoyed football. They named their newly found team after Bulgarian revolutionary, Vasil Levski (1837-1873), considered a national treasure in Bulgaria for founding the Internal Revolutionary Organization and working to liberate the country from the occupation of the Ottoman Empire.

Levski Sofia has never been relegated from the First League (the highest division in Bulgarian football) since the league was founded in 1937. The strongest and most bitter rivalry Levski Sofia has is with fellow Bulgarian football club, CSKA Sofia. The rivalry has been prevalent since the 1940s and is so intense that whenever the two sides play each other, it is commonly coined the "Eternal derby of Bulgarian football."

Construction of Stadion Georgi Asparuhov started in 1960 and it was open to the public by 1963. It was renovated in 1999 and then again in 2016. It is nicknamed "Gerena" which means "the flood plain" in Bulgarian. The stadium features an an athletics track around the football pitch. It has also been home to concerts, with Sting performing in the stadium in 2011 and Queen and Adam Lambert performing there in 2016.

Answer: Menai Suspension Bridge

Still standing to this day and listed as a Grade I structure, the Menai Suspension Bridge is a suspension bridge that connects mainland Wales to the island of Anglesey, which lies off the northwest coast of Wales via the Menai Strait. The bridge became the world's first major suspension bridge in 1826. Construction of the bridge began in 1819. The bridge is around 1,370 feet (420 m) in length.

Thomas Telford (1757-1834) was a Scottish engineer, with the town of Telford in Shropshire, England, being named after him, largely because he was one of the designers of the Shrewsbury Canal in Shropshire, which was completed by 1797. He was also one of the designers of the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct in Wales, which was opened to the public in 1805. He was also part of the designing team for St Katharine Docks, a now defunct dock that was his only major construction located in the city of London.

Answer: Hôtel de Bourgogne

"Phèdre" is a play set in Troezen, Greece, and consists of five acts. The play is based on "Hippolytus" which is a play by Greek dramatist Euripides. The play focuses on Phèdre, a queen who is misinformed about the death of her husband, King Thésée, when in fact he is alive. Upon being informed of her husband's death, Phèdre approaches Hippolyte and confesses her love for him. Hippolyte dismisses this. When King Thésée returns and it is known he is in fact alive, Phèdre lies and paints Hippolyte as the one who pursued her. This leads Thésée to exile Hippolyte, and summon the god Neptune to extract revenge on the innocent man.

Jean Racine (1639-1699) was a French playwright who is considered one of the greatest dramatists of the 17th century. His first play was entitled "Amasie" but it was never performed on stage in his lifetime. In 1664, the first play of his to reach the stage was the tragedy, "La Thébaïde."

Constructed in 1548, the Hôtel de Bourgogne was the most prestigious and prominent theatre of Paris until the 1630s. It was demolished in 1734 in order to build a leather market.

Answer: Anne Boleyn

The current Blickling Hall is an English stately home of Jacobean style, constructed by 1616. Designed by English architect, Robert Lyminge (1607-1628), Blickling Hall was established for Sir Henry Hobart, 1st Baronet, on the ruins of the defunct mansion. The stately home features a statue of Anne Boleyn, with an inscription of "Anna Bolena hic nata 1507" (translating to "Anne Boleyn born here 1507").

The library of Bickling Hall features some of the most historically significant literature of English history. The grounds contain 500 acres (200 ha) of forest, and is popular with dog walkers.

Anne Boleyn was King Henry VIII of England's second wife, and was executed on the orders of her husband in 1536, after he accused her of both adultery and witchcraft.

Answer: George H. W. Bush

George H.W. Bush (1924-2018) was born in the town of Milton, Massachusetts, to a wealthy and well-connected family. He joined the U.S Navy on his 18th birthday during the Second World War, one of the youngest pilots in this position at the time. He entered politics some decades after the war, becoming the chairman of Harris County, Texas, in 1963.

Although Ronald Reagan had the support of most other Republican politicians during the 1968 Republican Party presidential primaries, Bush pledged his support to Richard Nixon. Nixon won this nomination and would become U.S President in 1969.

Richard Nixon originally wanted to employ George H.W. Bush as a senior adviser, however, Bush persuaded the president to assign him the position of US Ambassador to the United Nations. This was Bush's first experience with foreign policy and he earned himself a reputation as tough negotiator. This was during both the Vietnam War and the Cold War, and provided him with invaluable experience in diplomacy, learning about and dealing with both the Soviet Union and China, America's two greatest adversaries during the Cold War.

Bush's time as US Ambassador to the United Nations was not without conflict. He disagreed with Nixon on his stance on the Indo-Pakistani war of 1971, with Nixon supporting Pakistan and Bush supporting India. Due to Nixon's administration bombing civilian structures in Vietnam in 1972, Bush was sent to the United Nations to convince then-secretary general of the UN, Kurt Waldheim, that the U.S.A was not committing crimes against humanity, reportedly expressing to journalists after this "I think that the best thing I can do on the subject is shut up."

George H. W. Bush became the 41st President of the United States in 1989 and held this position until 1993.

Answer: Java Sea

Constructed in Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan, the KMP Tampomas II was owned by Pelni, which is Indonesia's national cargo and passenger shipping business. Although Japan had given the company fair warning that the ship was over 10 years old and likely not seaworthy, Pelni purchased it. Not only did they purchase it, they only gave the ship four hours rest before setting sail again on a busy route. Considering the ship's age and lack of recuperation time, the maintenance of the ship was not effective.

Setting sailing on 24 January 1981 from Tanjung Priok in North Jakarta, Tampomas II, carrying many cars, was reported by a staff member to have a broken engine upon departure. Around 1,400 people were onboard including staff, paying passengers and stowaways.

While sailing on the Java Sea close by the Masalembu Islands, a storm occurred. Fuel began to leak from the engine and people smoking cigarettes had thrown the butts down the ship's vents. A fire began to spread and the crew were unable to extinguish it. The cars stored on the deck and the engines caught fire. There were only 6 lifeboats which could carry 50 people, and the crew were disorganised and in panic, failing to point the passengers to the life boats or assist them. There were some reports of the crew lowering the life boats for themselves without assisting the passengers. Some passengers dove into the sea in desperation and some waited on the inflamed ship to be rescued.

The ship sank 30 hours after the first ignition of the fire. At least 288 people were still in the lower decks of the ship, sinking to their deaths with it. Including stowaways, it is estimated that around 670 people died.

Indonesian singer Iwan Fals composed a song about the tragedy titled "Celoteh Camar Tolol dan Cemar" (translating to "Babble Seagull Fools and Blackened").

Answer: Guinea

The national flag of Mali features a tricolour of green, gold and red. Mali has had this flag since 1961. The previous flag of Mali was established in 1959, with the tricolours being the same but with a squatting figure of a man in the centre. This was removed due to the objections of the highly Muslim population who believed that depictions of the human figure were against their religion.

The national flag of Guinea features the same colours but in a different order: red, gold, then green.