The Number 2 Trivia

1. Which month of the year is named after a deity traditionally depicted with two faces?

From Quiz Two for the Show

Answer: January

In the original Roman calendar, the year had only ten months and 304 days; March was the first month, while winter was a month-less period between the end of the year and the beginning of a new one. According to tradition, it was Romulus' successor, Numa Pompilius (the second king of Rome, so also related to the theme of this quiz), who added January and February to the calendar to cover a standard lunar year (354 days). This transition, which is supposed to have happened around 713 BC, may instead have occurred much later, around 450 BC. The first of the two new months, and the first month of the year, was named after Janus, the two-headed (occasionally also four-headed) god of beginnings, endings, and transitions, often identified with gateways. Some scholars believe him to have been the most important deity in the archaic Roman pantheon, on a par with Jupiter, the king of gods. In Ancient Rome, Janus presided over the beginning and ending of a war: the doors of his temple in the Forum were opened during wartime, and closed during peacetime. The first day of the year was dedicated to Janus, and celebrated in Rome by exchanging good wishes and small gifts. There are many place names in Italy that reference Janus - the most significant of them being the Janiculum Hill on the right bank of the Tiber. In the Middle Ages, Janus was also adopted as a symbol by the maritime city of Genoa, whose name is believed by some to have derived from the Latin "Ianua", meaning "door". The names of July and August come from Julius Caesar and Augustus, while March is named after Mars, the Roman god of war.

From Quiz It Takes Two

Answer: "snake eyes"

"Snake eyes," is the usual call, because the small single pips look like beady little snake eyes. The stickman is the centrally located person at the craps table who directs the taking and paying of bets, passes the dice to the shooter with a long L-shaped wooden stick, and calls out the results of the roll. This dice game is old, possibly dating as far back as the 12th century and the Crusades, when English knights played a forerunner game called "Hazard" while waiting out out the enemy during a castle siege. The current name probably derives from the French "crapaud" (meaning 'toad') which referred to the shape of the players as they hunched on the ground while playing the street version of the game.

From Quiz Two for the Show

Answer: Bologna

During the Middle Ages, wealthy families often built towers to show their power and influence - much like modern-day skyscrapers - rather than as defensive structures. Between the 12th and the 13th century, Bologna was estimated to have over 100 towers, with a skyline that would have put Manhattan to shame. 22 of these towers have survived, the most famous of which are the two leaning towers named Garisenda and Torre degli Asinelli, located in a strategic position at the intersection of the roads that led to the five gates of the city. The two structures, probably built in the early 12th century, are named after the families that erected them: the Garisenda is the shorter (48 m/157 ft) and more leaning of the two, while the Torre degli Asinelli is over twice as high (97.2 m/319 ft), and crowned with an overhanging battlement. At night the towers - which are located close to Piazza Maggiore, Bologna's main square - are lit by a special lighting system that makes them visible from every corner of the city. The capital of the northern region of Emilia-Romagna, Bologna is the seat of the oldest university in the Western world, and its luscious food enjoys global renown.

From Quiz It Takes Two

Answer: Two to Tango (1999) - starring Matthew Perry, Neve Campbell, and Dylan McDermott

This 1999 comedy is actually "Three to Tango." In it, McDermott is rich businessman Charles Newman, and Campbell is Amy, his girlfriend. Perry, playing the part of Oscar Novak, is hired by Charles as a star architect. For somewhat absurd and barely believable reasons, the other two mistakenly believe Oscar to be gay. He then falls in love with Amy, and the fun and misunderstanding accelerates. There is an obscure 1988 movie titled "Two to Tango" which I hope you haven't heard of, since I wasn't trying to trick you. It's a thriller about a hit man sent to Argentina. It had no notable stars, did nothing at the box office, and was rated poorly on websites. "Taking of Pelham One Two Three" is a remake of the original identically titled film starring Walter Matthau, Robert Shaw, and Martin Balsam. "Two for the Money" is an American drama about sports and gambling. "Lock, Stock..." is a British comedy about a group of criminals in London involved in a number of scams and a card game which goes very wrong. This was director Ritchie's first feature film. He also helmed "Snatch" (2000), "Sherlock Holmes" (2009), and "The Man From Uncle" (2015).

From Quiz Two for the Show

Answer: Treebeard

Described by Gandalf as the oldest living being in Middle-earth, Treebeard is one of the Ents, huge, tree-like "shepherds of trees" that live for the most part in the Forest of Fangorn (also the translation of Treebeard's name in Sindarin, one of the Elvish languages), located at the southern end of the Misty Mountains. In the first half of "The Two Towers", the hobbits Merry and Pippin, two of the members of the Fellowship of the Ring, meet Treebeard in the Forest after escaping from Orcs. Roused to anger by the turncoat wizard Saruman's destruction of many of the forest's trees, Treebeard and the Ents march to the fortress of Orthanc and destroy the surrounding valley, diverting the river to flood its underground forges and furnaces, and trapping Saruman in his impregnable tower. The character of the sycophantic Gríma Wormtongue is also introduced in "The Two Towers", as is Shadowfax, the magnificent horse that becomes Gandalf's trusty steed and companion. Greyhame ("greycloak") is one of Gandalf's epithets, given to him in Rohan.

From Quiz It Takes Two

Answer: "Two Blind Mice"- James Patterson

The 2002 James Patterson novel is titled "Four Blind Mice," not two. It's a crime drama involving murder, corruption, and cover-up in the military as a result of atrocities in Vietnam. It's not for the faint of heart. The classic "A Tale of Two Cities" is one of Charles Dickens' most famous and enduring novels. Published in 1859, it takes the pulse of some of society's timeless issues in the context of a story set during the French revolution. "The Two Towers" is volume II of Tolkien's epic fantasy novel about Hobbits and so much more. Originally intended as a follow up to "The Hobbit," the story kept getting bigger and eventually expanded into three volumes. He wrote it between 1937 and 1949. More than 150 million copies of the trilogy have been sold worldwide. Dr. Seuss is the wildly popular children's author with millions of copies of his more than sixty published books on children's shelves throughout the world. His born name is Theodor Seuss Geisel. "One Fish, Two Fish..." was first published in 1960.

From Quiz Two Cents

Answer: Double blind

In blinded experiments, information that may influence the participation or activity of the subjects is withheld for the duration of the study to reduce bias. Double blinded studies are essential to medicinal research and the development of treatment patterns. A neutral party or researcher classifies the participants into either a control group or research group. One group undergoes the experimental treatment while the others receive a standard treatment or placebo. Researchers than monitor the reactions or responses amongst the two groups.

From Quiz Two for the Show

Answer: Giuseppe Garibaldi

Established in 1816, the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies was ruled by the House of Bourbon, and included the Kingdom of Naples and the Kingdom of Sicily, which had existed since the Middle Ages. The Kingdom was so named because the Kingdom of Naples was known as the Kingdom of Sicily "beyond the lighthouse (of Messina)". It was the largest sovereign state in pre-unification Italy, and had a sizable, mostly professional army and navy. In spite of that, Giuseppe Garibaldi, with a corps of 1,089 volunteers known as "I Mille" (The Thousand), managed to overthrow it - also thanks to British support. The Thousand landed in Sicily on 11 May 1860, conquered the island, then crossed the Straits of Messina, and conquered the second half of the kingdom, which comprised most of present-day Southern Italy, with the help of the army of the Kingdom of Sardinia. The King of Naples, Francis II, held out in his fortress of Gaeta until February 1861, but eventually surrendered to Victor Emmanuel II. In March 1861, the Kingdom of Italy was officially declared. Though hailed as a heroic feat, the expedition of the Thousand was marred by a few bloody episodes, such as the violent repression of a peasant uprising at Bronte. The annexation of the former Kingdom of the Two Sicilies was also handled in a less than ideal manner, which caused a series of issues whose effects can be still felt today. Giacomo Puccini is an opera composer, Giovanni Boccaccio a writer, and Giorgio Armani a fashion designer.

From Quiz Two Cents

Answer: Verona

"The Two Gentlemen of Verona" is one of Shakespeare's earliest plays and is one of the least performed works of the Bard. The two gentleman of Verona are the friends Proteus and Valentine, who leave Verona for Milan for most of the play and seek the love and affection of Silvia, the daughter of the Duke of Milan. In the end Valentine wins the Duke of Milan's affection and Proteus rediscovers his first love, Julia, from Verona. Julia arrives in Milan in search of Proteus while in disguise as a man. This was the first of many Shakespearean plays that include cross-dressing.

From Quiz Two for the Show

Answer: Karakoram

The name K2 given to the world's second-highest peak comes from the notation used by officer and surveyor Thomas Montgomerie during the Great Trigonometrical Survey of British India in 1856. K2 stands for "Karakoram 2", as it was the second of the peaks mapped by Montgomerie in the Karakoram range. However, while K1 was named Masherbrum by the local population, the second (and considerably taller) peak had no local name, probably because of its remoteness. The suggested name of Mount Godwin-Austen (after an early explorer of the region) was rejected by the Royal Geographical Society, but it is still occasionally used. The mountain's name is rendered as "Kechu" or "Ketu" in the Balti language, while the name "Qogir" is used in China. Located on the border between Gilgit-Baltistan (Pakistan) and Xinjiang (China), K2 stands at a height of 8,611 m (28,251 ft) above sea level. First summited in 1954 by an Italian expedition, the mountain has acquired the ominous name of "Savage Mountain", having claimed many lives during attempted climbs. Besides K2, another three of the fourteen "eight-thousanders" (mountains over 8,000 m/26,247 ft) are located in the Karakoram; they are all part of the Gasherbrum massif. Of the three wrong answers, Kathmandu is a city (the capital of Nepal), and Kazakhstan is the world's largest landlocked country, located in Central Asia. The Kalahari Desert is found in Southern Africa.

From Quiz Two for the Show

Answer: Frankie Goes to Hollywood

Released as a single on 4 June 1984, "Two Tribes" was written by three of the five members of Liverpool-based band Frankie Goes to Hollywood - vocalist Holly Johnson, drummer Peter Gill, and bassist Mark O'Toole - and produced by Trevor Horn. With its relentlessly pounding bass line and nihilistic lyrics cheering for nuclear war, the song was hugely successful in the UK, charting at No. 1 of the UK Singles Chart for nine consecutive weeks. It was later included on Frankie Goes to Hollywood's debut album, "Welcome to the Pleasuredome" (released in October 1984). "Two Tribes" was released in a wide range of themed remixes, and promoted through a campaign in which the band members appeared in American military garb, or in Soviet army uniforms. The video directed by former 10cc members Godley & Crème added a final touch of brilliance to the song's marketing campaign - depicting a no-holds-barred wrestling match between US President Ronald Reagan and Secretary of the USSR Communist Party Konstantin Chernenko that ends in global annihilation. The three wrong choices are also Liverpool-based bands that were active in the 1980s.

From Quiz It Takes Two

Answer: ____ on a match; ____ sheets to the wind

It's THREE on a match and THREE sheets in the wind. The 'three on a match' idiom refers to an interesting superstitious belief that it's bad luck to be the third person to have your cigarette lit from a match. It arose from soldiers, possibly in the Crimean War but definitely by World War II. The story was that enemy snipers would see the light when the first soldier lit up, would aim when he lit the second cigarette, and would fire as third man was getting lit, resulting in lights out for number three. Three sheets in (or to) the wind means drunk. This is of nautical origin. Sheets are the ropes that manage the sails. The more sheets that are loose and flapping in the wind, rather than secure and tied down, the more the sails flutter erratically, and the more the sailboat lurches out of control. Sailors thus attached degrees of inebriation to the number of sheets in the wind. Three was basically falling down drunk.

From Quiz Two Cents

Answer: Diana Ross & Lionel Ritchie

Each of those four duos made appearances in Billboard's ranking, which used a points system to determine the final rankings. "Endless Love" spent nine weeks at number one on the Billboard charts, the longest stay at the top of the chart for either Diana Ross or Lionel Ritchie in their careers. The song was written and produced by Ritchie, and was the final number one for Ross in her career. Thirteen years later, a cover of the song from Luther Vandross and Mariah Carey nearly returned the song to the top spot on the Billboard charts; it peaked at number two.

From Quiz Two for the Show

Answer: Thomas

Commonly known as "Doubting Thomas" after the episode in John 20:24-29, in which he refuses to believe the resurrection of Christ without direct evidence, Thomas the Apostle is also credited as the author of several apocryphal books. His name comes from the Aramaic "Ta-wma/T'oma", meaning "twin" (translated as "Didymos" in Greek). According to various sources, after the ascension of Christ Thomas travelled to Southern India, where he spent about 20 years before being martyred in 72 AD; his feast is observed on 3 July, the supposed day of his death. A large church, named San Thomas Cathedral Basilica (Santhome Church for short), was built by the Portuguese in the 16th century over the apostle's original tomb, in present-day Mylapore, the neighbourhood of Chennai (Tamil Nadu) where the apostle is believed to have been martyred. The church was rebuilt by the British in Neo-Gothic style at the end of the 19th century. The Apostle's remains, however, are now buried beneath the altar of St Thomas' Basilica in Ortona (Italy). An ethno-religious community of Indian Christians, named Saint Thomas Christians, has been based in the Malabar region of the Indian state of Kerala since the 8th century AD.

From Quiz It Takes Two

Answer: Italian: due

Giving the French (deux) or the Spanish (dos) would be too easy. For the other languages listed: German- drei is three, zwei is two; Portuguese- dez is ten, dois is two; Turkish- dort is four, iki is two(really!) [source: indifferentlanguages.com]

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