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Impossible General Knowledge Trivia Quiz

Here are fifteen REALLY difficult questions BUT to help you to understand why people can sometimes perform better than chance when they don't know the answer, I've left you some clues and given you some hints as to what they are.

A multiple-choice quiz by greybrow. Estimated time: 5 mins.

Author
greybrow

Time
5 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
232,135

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
15

Difficulty
Average

Avg Score
10 / 15

Plays
14771

Awards
Top 5% quiz!

Last 3 plays: hellobion (6/15), pmccoskey (7/15), Tarkowski (15/15).

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 15

1. This question contains one of those subtle grammatical traps you can so easily fall into.

Someone who is afraid of blushing is known as an ______ ? Hint

merinthophobe

taphephobe

gephyrophobe

erythrophobe

NEXT>

Question 2 of 15

2. The clue is in the question.

The time it takes the earth to complete EXACTLY one orbit of the sun is... Hint

366 days

365 days

365.242199 days

365.2 days

NEXT>

Question 3 of 15

3. This time the clue is in the options.

In the USA, which was the 16th state to join the Union? Hint

Vancouver

Alaska

Hawaii

Tennessee

NEXT>

Question 4 of 15

4. Good option construction is critical to a good question.

The process known as UHT entails the product being heat treated at a temperature of not less than 135 degrees Centigrade for ... Hint

A very long time

A medium amount of time, aseptically packaged in sterile containers, and it should have undergone minimum chemical changes in relation to the severity of the treatment required for sterilisation.

A very long time and it has then been aseptically packaged in sterile containers

A very short time, aseptically packaged in sterile containers, and it should have undergone minimum chemical, physical and organoleptic changes in relation to the severity of the treatment required for sterilisation.

NEXT>

Question 5 of 15

5. This one might entail some addition.

What are the third and fourth volumes in Robert Rankin's "Brentford" series? Hint

"East of Ealing" and "The Book of Ultimate Truths"

"The Brentford Triangle" and "The Sprouts of Wrath"

"East of Ealing" and "The Suburban Book of the Dead"

"East of Ealing" and "The Sprouts of Wrath"

NEXT>

Question 6 of 15

6. Sometimes the correct answer just looks right.

Robert Banks Jenkinson's term as British Prime Minister was notable for ... Hint

expensive foreign wars

education reforms

colonial expeditions

the ruthless suppression of free speech and the freedom of the press

NEXT>

Question 7 of 15

7. Common sense can sometimes play a part.

Which law sought to prevent discrimination against employees in the UK on the grounds of their sex? Hint

Sex Discrimination Act 1975

Race Relations Act 1976

Family Law Reform Act 1969

Administration of Justice Act 1982

NEXT>

Question 8 of 15

8. This one is a combination of playing safe and avoiding the unlikely.

What is the atomic number of Antimony? Hint

298

NEXT>

Question 9 of 15

9. When you have discounted the impossible whatever is left is likely to be right.

An increase in the velocity of fluid flowing through a pipe is ... Hint

unlikely to give rise to turbulence

likely to give rise to turbulence

solely dependent on the length of the pipe

impossible

NEXT>

Question 10 of 15

10. Hmm. Does one of these just leap off the page at you?

Of alpha, beta and gamma rays, which is a hydrogen nucleus? Hint

Alpha

None of these as these are not protons

Beta

Gamma

NEXT>

Question 11 of 15

11. It's all down to grammar again.

The main constituents of natural gas are _____ ? Hint

methane and ethane

hydrogen

helium

oxygen

NEXT>

Question 12 of 15

12. How good are you at foreign names?

Which painter produced a series of paintings for the Scuola di San Rocco in Venice? Hint

Tintoretto

Altdorfer

Baldung

Dumoussier

NEXT>

Question 13 of 15

13. Some of the adjectives in the question might point you to the answer here.

In highly successful South African trials, the inoculant's treatment of big round bale silage resulted in ________? Hint

reduced milk production

increased milk production

The effect was not predictable

There was no effect

NEXT>

Question 14 of 15

14. How good is your mathematical ability (and your reading skills)?

What PERCENTAGE of the atmosphere is Nitrogen? Hint

1/2

78%

Three quarters

All of it

NEXT>

Question 15 of 15

15. If it looks right it probably is.

The transformation from the Triassic to the Jurassic periods was marked by ... Hint

a major upsurge in marine fossils

a dramatic change from high diversity palynofloras to assemblages almost entirely composed of cheirolipidaceous conifers

an increase in ammonoid cephalapods

the disappearance of the continental tetrapods

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Most Recent Scores

Nov 25 2024 : hellobion: 6/15
Nov 22 2024 : pmccoskey: 7/15
Nov 21 2024 : Tarkowski: 15/15
Oct 25 2024 : mazza47: 13/15

Score Distribution

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. This question contains one of those subtle grammatical traps you can so easily fall into. Someone who is afraid of blushing is known as an ______ ?

Answer: erythrophobe

Did you spot that trailing "an" in the question, indicating the answer starts with a vowel?

2. The clue is in the question. The time it takes the earth to complete EXACTLY one orbit of the sun is...

Answer: 365.242199 days

There's a bit of a clue in the word EXACTLY isn't there?

3. This time the clue is in the options. In the USA, which was the 16th state to join the Union?

Answer: Tennessee

Yes, you guessed it by elimination (I hope) given that Vancouver is in Canada and Alaska and Hawaii were numbers 49 and 50 respectively.

4. Good option construction is critical to a good question. The process known as UHT entails the product being heat treated at a temperature of not less than 135 degrees Centigrade for ...

Answer: A very short time, aseptically packaged in sterile containers, and it should have undergone minimum chemical, physical and organoleptic changes in relation to the severity of the treatment required for sterilisation.

When in doubt, go for the longest!

5. This one might entail some addition. What are the third and fourth volumes in Robert Rankin's "Brentford" series?

Answer: "East of Ealing" and "The Sprouts of Wrath"

Just see which two titles appear most and at the point they coincide, choose that option (it works nearly every time).

6. Sometimes the correct answer just looks right. Robert Banks Jenkinson's term as British Prime Minister was notable for ...

Answer: the ruthless suppression of free speech and the freedom of the press

The longest and most precise answer is usually the correct one. Jenkinson was the 2nd Earl of Liverpool and was Prime Minister from 1812-1827.

7. Common sense can sometimes play a part. Which law sought to prevent discrimination against employees in the UK on the grounds of their sex?

Answer: Sex Discrimination Act 1975

Known in the UK as a "Ronseal" question as it does exactly what it says on the tin (i.e. if an answer looks obvious it's probably because it's right).

8. This one is a combination of playing safe and avoiding the unlikely. What is the atomic number of Antimony?

Answer: 51

There are two ways of guessing this one. Firstly, always avoid extremes and go for the safe, middle of the road number or, if you know anything about the Periodic Table of the Elements you can discount 1 (Hydrogen) and 8 (Oxygen) and there is no number 298 so it has to be 51 by default.

9. When you have discounted the impossible whatever is left is likely to be right. An increase in the velocity of fluid flowing through a pipe is ...

Answer: likely to give rise to turbulence

A slightly more subtle one this but where two options directly contradict each other it is highly unlikely that they are both wrong so one of them must be the right answer. In this case logic dictates that turbulence will arise from an increase in velocity so the correct answer more or less presents itself.

10. Hmm. Does one of these just leap off the page at you? Of alpha, beta and gamma rays, which is a hydrogen nucleus?

Answer: None of these as these are not protons

The classic trick question where one answer is completely different from the other three on offer.

11. It's all down to grammar again. The main constituents of natural gas are _____ ?

Answer: methane and ethane

Did you notice that the question was looking for an answer in the plural?

12. How good are you at foreign names? Which painter produced a series of paintings for the Scuola di San Rocco in Venice?

Answer: Tintoretto

It's an Italian city and an Italian church so it makes sense to pick an Italian painter ... doesn't it?

13. Some of the adjectives in the question might point you to the answer here. In highly successful South African trials, the inoculant's treatment of big round bale silage resulted in ________?

Answer: increased milk production

Well, two of the answers don't flow logically from the question while the other two directly contradict each other. Given that the question refers to "highly successful" it stands to reason that milk production must have increased!

14. How good is your mathematical ability (and your reading skills)? What PERCENTAGE of the atmosphere is Nitrogen?

Answer: 78%

Well the question did say "percentage" after all didn't it? And if you answered "all of it" shame on you - where does all that oxygen come from then?

15. If it looks right it probably is. The transformation from the Triassic to the Jurassic periods was marked by ...

Answer: a dramatic change from high diversity palynofloras to assemblages almost entirely composed of cheirolipidaceous conifers

No, I don't know what it means either but it's easily the longest, most technical and most complete answer so it really ought to be right (I mean would you fancy typing all that out just for a wrong answer?)

Source: Author greybrow

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor LeoDaVinci before going online.
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