Doublemm's Common Bond Trivia Quiz

Answer: Dragon

The legend of Saint George and the dragon is commonly told in the British Isles. George is the patron saint of England. He was said to have killed a dragon to prove himself as a noble warrior.

Sir Francis Drake was given the nickname "The Dragon", and the Spanish considered him a pirate.

Bhutan's flag features a detailed dragon-design. The Bhutanese refer to their country as the "land of the dragons" and refer to themselves as the "dragon people".

Dragons are stunning creatures inspired by nature and created by men. Feel free to play my quiz "Ferocious Fire-Breathing Fiends" if you'd like to learn more.

Answer: Fire

The year 64 AD alludes to the Great Fire of Rome, 1666 to the Great Fire of London, and 1871 to the Great Fire of Chicago.

Fire, whilst being the taker of life (as illustrated by the examples above), is also the symbolic essence of human life. According to Greek mythology, it was the gift given to man from Prometheus to distinguish man as the superior being on Earth. Fire remains a part of our culture and this is seen in such "strange" rituals as lighting bonfires, holy candles, and the Olympic flame.

Answer: May

St. Florian was a Polish saint who lent his name to the "Florian principle" - a person will try to get out of trouble by placing another in the same problematic situation. He also has a church in his name in the Polish city of Krakow. For more information on this beautiful city, take my quiz, "Krakow - Poland's Second City".

St. Pancras of Rome was known for being martyred at the age of just 14 after converting to Christianity.

Bede was called the "Father of English History" for his work "Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum". Spending much of his life in a monastery in Jarrow (one I have myself visited), Bede died in 735 and his bones were kept at Durham cathedral.

Answer: Horse

Conkers are found within green, spiky, leathery sacs which grow on the horse chestnut tree. They are the seeds of the tree.

The seasonal game mentioned in the question is usually called "conkers" and involves two players, each with a conker with a string threaded through, taking turns to strike the opponent's conker with their own, until one breaks. If the fallen conker does not break, but just falls of off the string, the crowd which gathered to view this spectacle will often exclaim "stamps!" and destroy your beloved conker. Playgrounds were filled with rumours of how to harden your conkers (that doesn't sound right) and therefore gain the upper hand in a duel. Such methods included keeping your conker in vinegar and painting it with nail varnish.

Answer: Butter

Butter is solid at room temperature and is described as a saturated fat, as opposed to an unsaturated fat. Examples of unsaturated fats include various types of oils. These are liquid at room temperature. The reason for this is that the hydrocarbon tails of the triglycerides are unsaturated (contain carbon to carbon double bonds) and so are kinked.

This means that the chains cannot lie as closely to each other as they do in butter and so have lower melting points (usually below room temperature).

Answer: Bottle

Eminem's "Crack a Bottle" was released in 2009 with the familiar faces of Dr. Dre and 50 Cent lending a helping hand. The song was featured in the album "Relapse", which saw the rap star return to the charts after a lengthy absence due largely to drug addiction.

Christina Aguilera's first major song was "Genie in a Bottle". From there, Christina lost the squeaky clean teen image created from her time in the Mickey Mouse Club and adopted a rather more "dirty" appeal which would allow her to develop a new fan base. She again went through a change of image, becoming more abstract in her music videos (e.g. "Fighter") and eventually adopting a '50s inspired style in several videos from her "Back to Basics" album in 2006.

The Police released "Message in a Bottle" in 1979 from the album "Reggatta de Blanc".

Answer: Robber

Picasso was taken in for questioning over the suspected theft of the 'Mona Lisa' in 1911. However, he was released without charge. The real thief was found to be an Italian man named Vincenzo Peruggia, who was employed at the Louvre at the time.

Thomas Blood (perhaps better known as Captain Blood) would have been a robber if his attempt to steal the Crown Jewels in 1671 had been successful. After his capture, Blood was pardoned by the king and, for unknown reasons, was given land in Ireland.

Robin Hood is a character from English folklore and openly stole from the rich and gave to the poor. He is often depicted in green, wearing tights and carrying a bow and arrow.

Answer: Stone

As I know this is a well-loved topic here at FT, I just had to include it in my quiz!

Steve Anderson is better known in the world of WWE as Stone Cold Steve Austin, Dwayne Johnson is the Rock, and Mark Calaway's alias is the Undertaker. Austin's connection is in the name - "Stone Cold", the Rock is a synonym for stone, and the Undertaker's famed finishing move is the "tombstone". These three are amongst the most famous names of WWE and all have had careers which spanned what has become known as the "Attitude Era" of WWE (then WWF) - the peak of the organisation's popularity.

Answer: Saw

The saw shark is so named because of its barbed snout, which it uses to attack prey or as a defence. These sharks are found in some areas of the Indian Ocean as well as off the coast of Japan.

The hammerhead is famed for its oddly shaped head, but it perhaps not as well known for its remarkable "sixth sense". The hammer head can detect electrical signals as small as half a billionth of a volt.

Answer: Fly

All of the answers in questions one through nine are insects (when you add the word "fly"): dragonfly, firefly, mayfly, horse-fly, butterfly, bottle fly, robber fly, stonefly, and sawfly. For more information about the role of insects and other invertebrates in mythology, world cultures, and nature, feel free to take the quizzes written by myself and Rowena8482 as part of the "Invertebrate Inquisition" series.