Head Over Heels Trivia Quiz

Answer: Capitate bone

The neurocranium is composed of the following eight bones:

1 ethmoid bone (separates nasal cavity from the brain)
1 frontal bone (the forehead)
1 occipital bone (lower back of head)
2 parietal bones (the sides and top - joining with the frontal)
1 sphenoid bone (front middle of skull)
2 temporal bones (the sides and base)

The capitate bone is actually one of the bones found in the hands.

Adjacent to the neurocranium, but not typically considered part of the same system (nor part of the viscerocranium (facial bones)) are the ossicles. These are the three bones found in each ear. They are:

2 malleus (hammer)
2 incus (anvil)
2 stapes (stirrup - the smallest bone in the body)

Fourteen down, 192 to go!

Answer: Lacrimal bones

There is a mnemonic phrase that is used to remember the facial bones: Virgil Can Not Make My Pet Zebra Laugh. That translates as:

1 Vomer (hard to describe location - articulates with the sphenoid, the ethmoid, the palatine bones, and the maxillary bones)
2 Conchae (inferior nasal turbinate)
2 Nasal bones (the 'bridge' of the nose)
2 Maxilla (upper jawbones)
1 Mandible (lower jawbone)
2 Palatine bones (between maxilla and sphenoid bones)
2 Zygomatic bones (cheekbones)
2 Lacrimal bones (front part of orbital cavity behind nasal bones)

Another fourteen described - that makes 28 of 206! (178 to go)

Answer: Hyoid bone

The hyoid bone is also known as the lingual bone, and its function is to aid in tongue movement and swallowing.

The name 'hyoid' refers to the Latin name of the bone - 'os hyoideum'. Hyoideum means 'shaped like the letter upsilon' - upsilon, if you don't know, is U-shaped.

That's our 29th bone, just 177 to go!

Answer: Fourteen

The rib cage (or thoracic cage) has seven 'true' ribs on both the left and right sides of the sternum; the scientific name for them is 'costae verae'. The eighth through tenth ribs (six altogether) are called 'false' ribs, as they are attached to the ribs above them, and not to the sternum (they are called 'costae spuriae'). The last two ribs (four altogether) are not attached at the front of the body at all, but rather connect only to the spinal column. They are called 'floating' ribs, or 'costae fluitantes'.

Another 25 bones accounted for; our running total is 54, leaving 152 still to come.

Answer: 7 cervical, 5 lumbar

From top to bottom, the vertebrae are divided as:

Seven cervical vertebrae, connecting the skull to the thorax;
Twelve thoracic vertebrae, connecting to the rib cage; and
Five lumbar vertebrae, connecting the thorax to the pelvis.

(Part of the pelvis is considered part of the spine - that will be looked at later in the quiz).

Altogether, they make up the vertebral column, or spine.

Twenty-four more bones accounted for, leaving 128 to discover.

Answer: Eight

The carpals each have a name. There are a couple of different mnemonic phrases that exist to help remember them: 'some lovers try positions that they can't handle', or 'so long to pinky, here comes the thumb' (depending on the order you want to reference them).

The carpal bones (two each) are:

Scaphoid bone
Lunate bone
Triquetrum bone
Pisiform bone
Trapezium
Trapezoid bone
Capitate bone
Hamate bone

And, of course, the shoulders and arms (two each):

Scapula (shoulder blade)
Clavicle (collarbone)
Humerus (upper arm)
Radius (forearm)
Ulna (forearm)

Shoulders, arms and wrists - a total of 26 bones combined. That leaves 102 bones to come.

Answer: Superior

The metacarpals connect the wrist to the finger bones (phalanges), first with the proximal phalanges, then the intermediate phalanges (excluding the thumb), and lastly the distal phalanges.

With the 19 bones in each hand (38 in total), we are left with just 64 bones to find.

Answer: Sacrum

The spinal column does not just include the cervical, thoracic and lumbar vertebrae, but also continues downward to include the sacrum (five fused vertebrae) and coccyx (tailbone).

The ossa coxae are the hipbones. They are each composed of three fused bones called the ilium, ischium and pubis (now considered one bone).

Four more bones accounted for, 60 left to come.

Answer: Patella

Sesamoid bones are bones that are embedded within tendons. The patella (kneecap) is embedded within the quadriceps tendon.

Two each of our leg bones:

Femur (thighbone)
Patella (kneecap)
Tibia (shinbone)
Fibula (calf bone)

Another eight accounted for, leaving 52 bones for the final question.

Answer: Calcaneus

The ankles and feet are similar to the wrist and hands in terms of the number of bones used, with only one bone less (in each ankle) to count.

Where the wrist has eight carpal bones, the ankle has seven tarsal bones. They are (times two for the two ankles):

Calcaneus (heel bone)
Talus
Navicular bone
Medial cuneiform bone
Intermediate cuneiform bone
Lateral cuneiform bone
Cuboid bone

The metacarpals of the palm have their equivalent five metatarsals in the foot, and just like the finger bones, there are fourteen toe bones (also called proximal, intermediate and distal phalanges).

That accounts for the last 52 bones of the body!