Not My Problem Trivia Quiz

Answer: John Smith

Pocahontas (c. 1596-1617) was a daughter of Powhatan, an important chief among Native Americans of the Tidewater Virginia area. John Smith was captured in 1607 by a hunting party who answered to Powhatan. When an attempt was made to execute John Smith, Pocahontas is said to have intervened and convinced Powhatan to spare John Smith's life. Pocahontas later converted to Christianity and changed her name to Rebecca, marrying John Rolfe, with whom she had a son, Thomas.

In 1616-1617, Rebecca, John, and Thomas travelled to England where they had the opportunity to meet King James of England and Scotland.

Answer: US Revolutionary War

The ride of Sybil Ludington (1761-1839) took place on April 26, 1777. Her father was the commander of the local American militia. Forces from the British army planned to attack a military supply depot in Danbury, CT. From evening to dawn, Sybil rode over 40 miles through Putnam County, N.Y. and Danbury, CT to warn the militia. Though the British soldiers were able to attack Danbury, the American militia was able to force them to retreat. Sybil's ride was similar to the more famous ride of Paul Revere, but Sybil's ride was longer.

Answer: Slavery

Henry Highland Garnet (1815-1882) was born a slave in rural Maryland. With other members of his family, he escaped to freedom in the North, eventually settling in New York City. He became a committed abolitionist (one who called for an immediate end to slavery) while he was still a student.

He later became a minister and based his opposition to slavery on religious grounds. Late in his life, he moved to the nation of Liberia, in Africa.

Answer: US Civil War

Johnny Clem (1851-1937) enlisted in the Union Army during the Civil War in 1863 as a drummer boy. In a time before radio communication, the drummer could pass along orders to soldiers in the field. Different rhythm patterns could send simple messages such as turn left, turn right, forward, or retreat.

In 1864, Johnny Clem was promoted to Sergeant before being released from service. Re-enlisting in 1871, he served in the Quartermaster Corps until retiring in 1915.

Answer: Popsicle

Frank Epperson (1894-1983) left a container filled with a mixture of soda-water powder and water with a mixing stick outside of his Oakland, CA home on a particularly cold night. The next morning he noticed the mixture had frozen about the stick. In 1922 he purposely created a batch of these frozen products for a Fireman's Ball where they were a hit.

He successfully patented the frozen treats in 1923 as "Eppsicles" but was convinced to change the name to "Popsicles". Frank Epperson later sold his patent to the Joe Lowe Company.

Answer: Superman

Jerry Siegel (1914-1996) and Joe Shuster (1914-1992) were friends and classmates at Glenville High School in Cleveland, OH. In 1993, they began working on a character called "Superman" (words by Siegel and pictures by Shuster) who would first appear in a fan magazine self-published by Siegel.

The original Superman was a bald villain with telepathic powers. By 1938, the character had evolved to one who had superhuman physical powers such as super strength and the ability to leap very far (but not fly). That year, they sold their character to the forerunner of DC Comics.

Answer: Baseball

Joe Nuxhall (1928-2007) was signed by the Cincinnati Reds in 1944 when he was still just 15. He was called into pitch in the ninth inning of a 1944 game where the Cincinnati Reds were losing 13-0 to the St. Louis Cardinals. Although he got the first out, he was not able to end the inning and gave up five runs before he was pulled for another pitcher.

He became the youngest player in the 20th century to play a game for a Major League Baseball team. After the game in 1944, he was transferred to the minor leagues where would remain until 1952.

After his retirement from playing in 1966, he began a second career as a broadcaster for the Reds.

Answer: US involvement in the Vietnam War

Mary Beth Tinker (born 1952) and the other students decided in December 1965 to wear the armbands protesting US involvement in the Vietnam War and supporting an armistice or end to the war. This violated a policy of the school district. After being punished, the students took their school district to court.

The case of "Tinker v. Des Moines Independent School District" (1969) eventually went to the Supreme Court, the highest court in the United States. The Supreme Court upheld the rights of students to Freedom of Speech and Expression, even at school.

Answer: Soviet Union

Samantha Smith (1972-1985) received a letter from Yuri Andropov, leader of the Soviet Union, expressing his wish for peace. He also invited Samantha to visit the Soviet Union as his guest. Taking him up on his offer, Samantha visited the Soviet Union in July, 1983 for two weeks.

Although she was not able to meet Andropov, Samantha met and made many friends in the Soviet Union. Back in the United States, Samantha spoke about her experiences on many television programs and also wrote a book.

Answer: Eragon

Christopher Paolini (born 1983) began writing the book that would become "Eragon" when he was only 15. "Eragon" tells the story of the title character and his friendship with the dragon, Saphira. The book was first published in 2002 by a publishing company owned by Paolini's parents.

It was republished in 2003 by Alfred A. Knopf in 2003. The "Inheritance Cycle" includes three other books: "Eldest", "Brisingr", and "Inheritance". "Eragon" appeared on the New York Times Bestseller List.