FunTrivia Sci / Tech Mix: Vol 27 Quiz

Answer: Meal

The mean is the average of a set of numbers. The median is the middle number in a set. The mode is the most common number in a set. A meal is something people usually eat three times a day and is unrelated to statistics.

Question by player andymuenz

Answer: Hardness

The Mohs Hardness Scale is ranked from 0 to 10. Materials that are softer (e.g. table chalk) fall closer to 0, while materials that are harder (e.g. diamonds) fall closer to 10.

Question by player pent2go

Answer: Chewing

Involuntary actions are those which don't require conscious thinking and are not under our control. Heart beat, salivation and hiccups are some of the involuntary actions. Chewing is under our control so is a voluntary action.

Question by player ABHILASHA40

Answer: Spreads by human to human contact

Neither direct human-to-human contact, nor mammal-to-mammal contact, can transmit Lyme disease. It is only transmitted by ticks that are infected with the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi, which can then infect humans and other mammals if bitten by an immature tick (in its nymph stage).

It takes about 36-48 hours from the bite to infection. The rash looks somewhat like a bull's eye target.

Question by player Billkozy

Answer: kava

Kava (Piper methysticum) is a shrub native to the Pacific Islands, where it has been domesticated for thousands of years. Its binomial name means "intoxicating pepper" in Latin - a very fitting name, because kava roots contain a number of different organic compounds known as kavalactones, which have various psychotropic effects. Kava is traditionally prepared by grinding, pounding or chewing the roots, which are then mixed with cold water and consumed. Kava drink has relaxing and mildly stimulating effects, and is not considered to be addictive.

In the cultures of the Pacific Islands, kava is an important component of religious ceremonies and other community events, while in Western countries it is often marketed as a dietary supplement. Kaki is the specific name of the Oriental persimmon tree, while kale is a variety of cabbage (Brassica oleracea var. acephala), and kapok is a tropical tree cultivated for its fibre.

Question by player LadyNym

Answer: Herpetology

Herpetology is the study of reptiles. Entomology is for insects. The study of fishes is called ichthyology and pteridology is the study of ferns.

Question by player adette_phoenix

Answer: Artificial Intelligence

The term "Artificial Intelligence" has been around for a long time, but its popularity, as well as the perception of what it means, has changed over time. In the late 2010s, it tends to mean how computers can learn by themselves from massive data sets. Things they can learn range from how to drive a car to how to recognize cancer from a picture of a skin lesion. Recommendations that you get from on-line shopping sites and streaming services on what to buy/watch next are also based on such algorithms.

One specific example is computers that play chess. Earlier chess computers, like Deep Blue that famously beat world champion Garri Kasparov, were taught to play. The current (2019) best chess computer, Alpha Zero, has taught itself.

Question by player akg1486

Answer: His forehead

The term "sinciput" comes from the Latin "semi" meaning half, and "caput" meaning head.

Question by player Trufflesss

Answer: The year it first appeared

Although first just referred to as "coronavirus", that is just a reference to a group of similar maladies including the SARS epidemic of 2004. The Covid 19 pandemic first appeared in Wuhan province, China in December of 2019. It was officially given the name by the World Health Organazation on February 11, 2020.

Question by player njbruce

Answer: Economics

The term was coined by the English historian Thomas Carlyle. To many Victorians, the science of economics seemed to point to inevitable famine and human misery as continued population growth outstripped mankind's ability to produce food and other necessities of life.

Question by player daver852