Don't Frown at Brown Trivia Quiz

Answer: Brown rat

Other names for the brown rat include common rat, sewer rat (how insulting), Norway rat and wharf rat. Its scientific name is Rattus Norvegicus, hence its association with Norway. However, it can be found on all of the world's continents except Antarctica. Give it time though, and Rattus will no doubt show up there as well, complete with little ratty fur coats, mufflers and beret.

Answer: Vivisection on living animals

Vivisection is surgery carried out on living creatures so that scientific experiments and investigations can be carried out. It is now law that any such experiment must include "tranquillisers, analgesics and anesthetics" for the creature. It is a practice rarely performed today by scientists however, and is completely opposed by organisations concerned about the welfare of all animals. During the period 1903-1910, activists broke into medical facilities where it was known such experiments were being carried out, and fought pitched battles with the staff of these organisations.

This all began when one William Bayliss performed, in front of an audience at the Physiology Department at a London college, such a surgery on a dog. The poor little thing was supposed to be anaesthetized, but was clearly seen to be conscious and struggling.

Answer: Brown dwarfs

These objects have been thought to exist for some time prior to the verification of their existence. The long search for them finally bore fruit in 1988 when two professors at the University of California identified them. Brown dwarfs are sub-stellar objects that fit on the spectrum between large gas giants and stars lower in mass.

They were originally known as black dwarfs, but today black dwarfs are classified as white dwarfs that have cooled down. So what does proof of the existence of brown dwarfs mean to the average person in the street? Don't ask me, I'm just the piano player.

Answer: Both of these

Such is their determination to hang onto the brown association with their company, UPS has filed two trademarks on this colour so that other organisations can't use it. Somebody has to love brown and UPS does just that.

Answer: Abandoned industrial and commercial sites

These areas have been earmarked for housing development. However, there are problems preventing the further development of same because of the belief that the sites may contain contaminants harmful to the environment.

Answer: Chocolate

Chocolate is produced from cacao seeds. It's been used as a food product for over 3,000 years in the area of Mexico, central and south America, and the earliest documentation of its use dates back to 1,100 BC. By themselves the seeds taste revolting. The process that brings out the chocolate flavour includes fermentation, drying, cleaning, roasting and then grinding the inner part of the seed to produce cocoa. Scientists claim that eating a moderate amount of chocolate produces a feeling of being in love, and some research indicates it can even lower blood pressure. I don't particularly like chocolate, so am apparently doomed to a loveless life which eventually concludes with a cerebral haemorrhage.

Answer: Molasses

This is a dark bread with a sweet taste. It's usually cooked in a can or a cylinder. It can also contain any of a number of grain products such as cornmeal, wheat or rye. Apparently baked beans are one of its favoured toppings for a quick meal. Molasses and baked beans? And to think they criticise Aussies for Vegemite.

Answer: 4 point

Snooker is a game played on a green covered table. It has six pockets into which balls are shot using a long stick known as a cue. White, red, brown, yellow, green, pink, blue and black balls are buried in the pockets, with the different coloured balls worth different points. The game is believed to have originated in India in the latter part of the 19th century.

Answer: Many were ex-communists

The brownshirts, or stormtroopers, were the paramilitary arm of the Nazi Party. They played a very important role in the rise to power of Hitler. The reason that brown was the colour chosen for their uniform was because a large number of brown shirts were left over from the First World War. These had been ordered for soldiers posted to Germany's colonies in Africa.

Answer: Greedy and avaricious

That is, of course, if you believe in auras, which parapsychologists believe are subtly coloured glows emanating from individuals and objects. Different colours represent different aspects of that individual or object. Many people with brown auras, for example, are said to be unethical business men or women out to make as much money as they can, as quickly as they can, and with no particular scruples about how they achieve this end.