Cool Zooms, Part XXV Trivia Quiz

Answer: Eagle

The bateleur (Terathopius ecaudatus) is a medium-sized eagle with striking head coloration and, unusually, almost no tail (hence the ecaudatus in the scientific name, meaning without a tail). Living mainly in grasslands and open savanna, this predator's diet varies enormously from insects to smaller birds and eggs and smaller mammals. They will also eat carrion. Bateleurs form monogamous relationships and both parents take care of the usually single egg that is laid, which hatches two months later. It is believed, although not verified, that the bateleur is the basis of the eagle emblem for Zimbabwe.

Eagle is also a marque (brand) of vehicles manufactured by Chrysler in the USA, after the 1987 purchase of the American Motors Corporation.

This question was flown in by MikeMaster99 who has a passion for photographing raptors but unfortunately has yet to travel to Africa.

Answer: Oleander

Since oleander is the only species currently classified in the genus Nerium, it is commonly referred to by either name. It is a flowering plant in the dogbane family (apparently so named because such plants are lethal to or repel dogs). Despite its toxicity, risk of poisoning is relatively low due to its unpalatability, and oleander is a popular ornamental and landscaping plant.

As a quirk, RELOANED can also be anagrammed to create the name of that famous vehicle from the 'Back to the Future' series of films, the DeLorean.

This blooming question was thrown into the mix by Phoenix Rising's JCSon.

Answer: Morgan Fairchild

Morgan Fairchild appeared in five episodes of 'Friends' as Nora Tyler Bing, Chandler's mother, from 1995 to 2001. She only appeared in one episode of 'Dallas', in 1978. Jenna Wade did not reappear until 1983 and was then played by Priscilla Presley.

Fairchild's first credited on-screen role was in 'Search for Tomorrow' from 1973 to 1977. During the 1970s she made appearances on primetime television series such as 'Kojak', 'Happy Days', 'The Bob Newhart Show', 'Police Woman' and 'Barnaby Jones' and also had a recurring role on the sitcom 'Mork & Mindy'. Her first regular prime time role was as Constance Weldon Carlyle on the soap opera 'Flamingo Road', which ran from 1980 to 1982 and for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award.

Her chosen first name is taken from the title character of the David Warner comedy film 'Morgan - A Suitable Case for Treatment' (1966).

Morgan is also the name of a British motor car manufacturer. Morgan cars are all assembled by hand and therefore the waiting list is approximately six months, although it has been as long as ten years!

This question was driven around for a while by Phoenix Rising member lg549 and then parked in this quiz.

Answer: Holden

'Chasing Amy' is a 1997 romantic comedy that sees Ben Affleck's Holden McNeil, a comic book artist, fall for the beautiful Alyssa Jones, played by Joey Lauren Adams, a fellow comic book artist but whose sexual preferences are with women rather than men.

'As the World Turns' is a CBS soap opera that commenced in 1956 and aired its final episode in 2010. The Snyder clan is one of the central families in the series. Holden Snyder, played by Jon Hensley, is the son of Emma and Harvey (deceased) Snyder and was put forward as the modern day patriarch of the Snyder family.

Based on the true-crime book 'Mindhunter: Inside the FBI's Elite Serial Crime Unit', written by John E. Douglas and Mark Olshaker, 'Mindhunter' is a psychological thriller series that first aired in 2017. It follows the workings of the FBI's Behavioural Science Unit made up of special agents Holden Ford (Jonathan Groff) and Bill Tench (Holt McCallany) and psychologist Wendy Carr (Anna Torv).

The Holden motor vehicle was seen as "Australia's Own Car" and dominated the local market through the 1950s and 1960s. Its main competitor during this period was the Ford Motor Company so the irony in the name of the Holden Ford character in 'Mindbender' is not lost on this author.

This question was driven by Phoenix Rising's pollucci19 whose first car was a HK model Holden and has been a Holden fan ever since.

Answer: Moray eels

'The Little Mermaid' is a 1989 Disney animated movie loosely based on a Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale of the same name. Ursula is the antagonist of the movie, who offers Ariel, the mermaid protagonist, a Faustian bargain. Like any good villain, Ursula has two loyal henchmen, in this case, a pair of moray eels called Flotsam and Jetsam. Unlike most movies where the minions are inept and almost comical, this pair are insidious and efficient. They are the ones to realise Ariel's infatuation with the prince and after King Triton destroys Ariel's grotto, they convince her to visit Ursula.

Flotsam and Jetsam were voiced by Patricia 'Paddi' Edwards who played Enya in 'Star Trek: The Next Generation' (1988) and also voiced Gozer in the 1984 rendition of 'Ghostbusters'.

Ariel, the mermaid shares her name with the Ariel Motor Company Ltd in Somerset, England who have produced the Ariel Atom race car, an exoskeletal car, and the Ariel Ace motorcycle.

Phoenix Rising's leith90 slipped this question into the quiz while no-one was looking, then made a speedy getaway.

Answer: Wireless power transmission

Also called the "Tesla Tower", Nikola Tesla planned to use the tower as the first of a grid of such structures, to power a worldwide, wireless transmissions system, using the earth's natural energy as a free conductor. His lifelong obsession was the wireless transmission of energy, and while he intended to use the tower to transmit currents around the globe, he also hoped to use the tower for far-reaching telecommunications of music, news, stock market reports and other types of messages. Sadly, the unfinished tower was scrapped to pay off Tesla's debts in 1917, but the original laboratory building still stands, above hundreds of feet of mysterious tunnels underneath the Wardenclyffe facility.

Tesla hoped to replace the piston engine with his turbine engine; it was capable of 3,600 rpm, generating 675 horsepower, and he believed it would offer higher efficiency and lower production costs than other engines. The car company bearing his name was not related to Tesla, except by its name, used as tribute to Tesla's ambitions.

This message was telegraphed by the wonders of the internet from the Antipodes by Phoenix Rising member VegemiteKid, who thinks Tesla would be happy about the benefits of wireless transmissions.

Answer: It contains a lake which is the source of the Mississippi river

The 49th parallel designates the Minnesota to Washington section of the border between Canada and the United States. Because of some description errors in the 1793 Treaty of Paris (which defines the location of the border), there are some errors where the Manitoba/Ontario border meets the Minnesota border at the Lake of the Woods. This resulted in a small parcel of land jutting into the lake (596 sq. miles) that has a western border with Manitoba, meaning it is a part of the US above the 49th parallel but not contiguous with the rest of the US. The road connection to the rest of Minnesota travels though a small portion of Manitoba. The 2010 population was 199 and most of the land is held in trust by the Red Lake Indian Reservation and the Ojibwa people.

While the word Minnesota comes from a Dakotan word meaning clear blue water or cloudy water, the word is similar to Mini which was an iconic British car released in 1959.

This question was minimised to fit into the quiz by 1nn1

Answer: Dacia

Dacia was a historic region in Eastern Europe whose boundaries included the Danube River (south), Dobruja (south east), Black Sea (east), and the Dniester River. The Carpathian Mountains were in Dacia's middle. In modern terms, the Roman province took in Romania and Moldova, along with sections of Bulgaria, Serbia, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and the Ukraine. In 376 CE the region was captured by the Huns.

Trajan was interested in conquering the province to gain the "Decebalus Treasure" and to possess the Dacian gold mines of Transylvania, to restore Rome's finances. Decebalus was a Dacian King and according to sources he had the Sargetia river's course altered, buried vast amounts of gold and silver objects in the riverbed, then restored the watercourse.

The Roman province of Dalmatia lay along the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea, taking in much of today's Albania, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Kosovo and Serbia. Galatia was in central Turkey. Lusitania was on the Iberian Peninsula, part of Portugal and Spain. There is little evidence of any of these three provinces having substantial gold resources.

Automobile Dacia S.A. is a Romanian car manufacturer, founded in 1966 and named after the ancient Roman province. It has since been sold to Renault. Models produced include the Dacia Duster and Dacia Dokker.

This question was treasured and driven by Phoenix Rising's psnz.

Answer: Wilson

Wilson Alwyn Bentley (1865-1931) of Jericho, Vermont was the first person known to photograph snowflakes and record their details. He did this by catching snowflakes with black velvet material and then photographing them before they melted. Given the primitive nature of early camera equipment, his work was remarkable.

To Bentley, snowflakes were "tiny miracles of beauty", while he called snow crystals "ice flowers". Through the University of Vermont, he published an article asserting that no two snow crystals were the same. McGraw-Hill published his book 'Snow Crystals' in 1931 and it remains in print in the 21st century.

Snowflake Bentley shares his surname with Walter Owen Bentley (1888-1971), an English engineer responsible for founding Bentley Motors Limited in London in 1919. The marque won the 24 Hours of Le Mans race five times between 1924 and 1930 before being purchased by Rolls Royce. Despite a series of acquisitions and mergers, Bentley luxury vehicles continue to be produced in the 21st century.

Phoenix Rising's psnz has always treasured the beauty found in nature or in human accomplishments and was thrilled to slide this question into the quiz.

Answer: Mercury

According to Roman mythology, Mercury is the son of Jupiter and Maia. In addition to merchants and thieves, Mercury is also the god of travellers and communication. The festival Mercuralia was held in his honour on the anniversary of his temple dedication at Aventine Hill around 500 BC. During the festival merchants would sprinkle themselves and their merchandise with water from a well at Porta Capena. The name Mercury is believed to be derived from the Latin "merx", "mercari", and "merces", all of which are variations of "trade" or "wage". The Greek counterpart of Mercury is Hermes.

Mercury is also a former division of automobile manufacturer Ford Motor Company.

This question was marketed by Phoenix Rising team member purelyqing.

Answer: Stephen King

'Mr. Mercedes' is the first book in a trilogy (with 'Finders Keepers' and 'End of Watch') by horror writer, Stephen King. In the story, a deranged young man, Brady Hartsfield, drives a stolen Mercedes sedan into a crowd of people who had lined up for a job fair, killing many of them. Detective Bill Hodges is haunted by the unsolved case well into his retirement.

The three-part story was released on television starring Brendan Gleeson as Hodges and Harry Treadaway as Hartsfield on the now-defunct AT&T pay channel, "Audience".

Having never owned, or driven, a Mercedes automobile, Phoenix Rising's mike32768 can only imagine.

Answer: Four

Talk about a successful product placement. How many Aston Martins have been sold because of exposure to James Bond movies? The DB5 appeared in 'Goldfinger', 'Thunderball', 'GoldenEye', and 'Tomorrow Never Dies'. After the franchise was rebooted in 2006 with 'Casino Royale' it also appeared in that as well as subsequent films such as 'Skyfall' and 'Spectre'.

The origin of the DB5 is different between the movie franchise and Fleming's novels. In the novels the DB5 is James Bond's personal vehicle whereas in the 'Casino Royale' movie, Bond wins it in a game of poker in the Bahamas. As such this is the only movie in which the DB5 did not have special gadgets like hidden machine guns, ejector seats, tyre slashers, oil slick dispenser and a bulletproof rear screen. Other Aston Martins like the Vantage, Vanquish and the Volante have appeared as well.

This question was shaken out (but not stirred) by Phoenix Rising team member 1nn1.

Answer: Johnny Logan

Born Sean Patrick Michael Sherrard, he adopted the name Johnny Logan from the main character in the 1954 film 'Johnny Guitar'. He would become the first person to win Eurovision (as a singer) on two occasions.

The first of these was in 1980 with the Shay Healy song 'What's Another Year', which would go on to become a hit for him all over Europe, in particular in the UK where it topped the charts. His second success as a singer came in 1987 though, this time, it was with a song he'd written himself, 'Hold Me Now'. The song would become a major hit for him. That wasn't enough for Logan. His song 'Why Me', which was performed by Linda Martin, would go on to win for Ireland at the 1992 Eurovision Song Contest.

The Logan name is also linked to motor vehicles. Renault's Romanian subsidiary, Dacia, produces a family car known as the Logan and there was a vehicle construction company founded in 1903 in Chillicothe, Ohio, that produced the Logan car for a period of five years.

Thoughts of "why me" flashed through Phoenix Rising's pollucci19's head when he put his hand up to do this question... "hold me now", please.

Answer: William Morris

William Morris was born in Walthamstow, Essex, UK on 24 March 1834 and died on 3 October 1896. He studied the classics at Oxford University where he became influenced by medievalism. He designed The Red House in Bexleyheath, just outside London, where he lived with his family between 1859 and 1865. It was there where he founded a decorative arts business, designing wallpaper and furniture with Gothic and medieval overtones.

He was also a successful author, making a considerable contribution to modern fantasy literature. During his lifetime he was better known for his poetry. His enduring legacy has however been his designs for textiles and furnishings.

Henry James described him as "short, burly, corpulent, very careless and unfinished in his dress...He has a loud voice and a nervous restless manner and a perfectly unaffected and businesslike address. His talk indeed is wonderfully to the point and remarkable for clear good sense".

His namesake: William Morris, 1st Viscount Nuffield (10 October 1877 - 22 August 1963) was the founder of Morris Motors Limited, known for cars such as the Morris Oxford, Morris Minor, the MG, and the Wolseley. His company was eventually bought out by the British Motor Corporation.

smpdit used to live in Bexleyheath, very near The Red House. Her parents also owned a grey Wolseley that she remembers with affection.

Answer: Vishnu

Vishnu (the preserver) is part of the Hindu Trimurti (triumvirate) along with Brahma (the creator) and Shiva (the destroyer). These three gods are responsible for the world's creation, upkeep and destruction. Whenever the world is threatened, Vishnu appears in the form of an avatar to restore the cosmic order. The discus, conch and mace are Vishnu's weapons. Symbols of Vishnu are the Salagrama/Shaligram (fossilised shell) and lotus flower (Nelumbo nucifera). The lotus flower or padma symbolises purity and transcendence.

In 1948, Colin Chapman (1928-1982) founded Lotus Engineering Ltd. This was followed in 1952 by Lotus Cars, a company to build sports/racing cars. Between 1962 and 1978, Lotus won seven F1 constructor's titles, six driver's championships and an Indianapolis 500.

Phoenix Rising's psnz raced this question to the finishing line, very happy with its handling characteristics.

Answer: 2 up and 1 down

A quark is a sub-atomic particle that can combine to form composite particles known as hadrons. Some examples of hadrons are protons and neutrons, which themselves are the components of the nucleus of an atom. There are six types, or flavours, of quark. They are up, down, strange, charm, bottom, and top. The quarks have fractional electrical charge values, and based on these values the six flavours can be grouped into up-type quarks (+2/3 of the elementary charge) or down-type quarks (-1/3 of the elementary charge); an elementary charge is the electrical charge carried by a single proton or electron. The proton consists of two up-type quarks and one down-type quark.

PROTON is also Malaysia's first national car. Established in 1983, it stands for "Perusahaan Otomobil Nasional" in the national Malay language and means "National Automobile Company".

This question was positively charged then driven by Phoenix Rising team member purelyqing.

Answer: Austin, Texas

In 2012, the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas became the tenth US racetrack to host a round of the F1 world championship and the sixth to do so using the title United States Grand Prix. The five other circuits to host a United States Grand Prix were the Sebring International Raceway in Florida, Riverside International Raceway in California, Watkins Glen International in New York State, a street circuit in Phoenix, Arizona, and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. In addition Long Beach Street Circuit in California hosted the United States Grand Prix West, a street circuit in Detroit hosted a Detroit Grand Prix, a track in Fair Park, Dallas hosted a Dallas Grand Prix, and a circuit in the car park of a Las Vegas casino hosted a race known as the Caesars Palace Grand Prix.

The inaugural race at COTA was won by McLaren driver Lewis Hamilton, who also went on to take four consecutive wins at the circuit for Mercedes between 2014 and 2017. The track is instantly recognisable to F1 fans for the steep uphill run to the first corner and its 250 feet (77 metre) tall observation tower from which you can see not only the whole circuit, but all the way to central Austin as well.

Apart from its connection to motor racing, Austin is also the name of a 20th century British car manufacturer.

Phoenix Rising's resident F1 fan Fifiona81 raced this question into the quiz.

Answer: The Rovers Return Inn

'Coronation Street' is a British soap opera that commenced in 1960 and one of the key settings of the show is The Rovers Return. The fictional pub, built in 1902, sits on the corner of Coronation and Rosamund Streets. It used to have three bars:
The Public Bar
The Snug, where the ladies who were unaccompanied went (and they got their drinks half a penny cheaper) and
The Select Bar, where the pub slugged you a little more for your drinks and justified it by having your beers served to you by a waitress.

This all changed in 1986 when the place was damaged by fire and the owners used that as an excuse to knock the walls down and turn it into a single, albeit, large bar.

Two years after our fictitious pub was born the Rover motor car brand was launched in Great Britain and remained in existence until 2005, when it was discontinued.

The question was raised like a glass of cold beer by Phoenix Rising's pollucci19, who still loves the insides of a good pub.

Answer: Sega

Sega was founded in Japan in 1960 and at the time primarily produced slot machines. Sega's first home video game console was the SG-100 which was released in 1983 but was vastly outsold by its competitor, the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), which was released on the same day.

The Sega Saturn was released in 1994 in Japan and in 1995 in North America and Europe. The system was the successor to the renown Sega Genesis but it was unable to capture that system's success. The system sold less than 10 million units and its sales in the U.S. were particularly poor. Surprisingly, the Sega Saturn did not feature a full game with Sega's flagship character, Sonic the Hedgehog.

In addition to being a gas giant planet and an underperforming Sega system, Saturn is also the name of a U.S. automobile manufacturer that operated as a subsidiary of General Motors from 1985 to 2010.

This question was ringed into the quiz by Phoenix Rising team member Triviaballer who unfortunately never owned a Sega Saturn as he was gaming on the Nintendo 64 during the mid-1990s.

Answer: Gerald Ford

Gerald Ford's middle name was Rudolph, a name that he shares with a rather famous reindeer who has a luminous nose. Jimmy Carter was born as James Earl Carter, and the D in FDR stood for Delano. His unusual name was French in origin, and means 'from the swamp'. It was his mother's maiden name. George Washington did not have a middle name.

Ford shared his name with a famous car company, but wasn't the only US president to do so - another example being Abraham Lincoln.

This question was written by Phoenix Rising member ozzz2002, who used to own a Ford (the car, NOT the president!)