To the Lighthouse Quiz | Thematic Fun

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, and it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness". In what book of the Bible would we find this quotation?

Answer: Genesis

In the Latin version of the Bible the term "fiat lux", is translated as "let there be light". "Let there be light" is used by 38 colleges and universities around the world as their motto.

Alexander Pope wrote:
"Nature and nature's laws lay hid in Night.
God said, 'Let Newton be!' and all was light."

2. One of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World was a lighthouse. In which city was it located?

Answer: Alexandria

The Lighthouse of Alexandria (also known as the Pharos of Alexandria) was believed to have been constructed between 280-247 BC. It was vulnerable to earthquakes which it 1323 caused it to be abandoned. It rose over 400 feet into the sky. Stones have been recovered from the harbor. It remains a symbol of the city of Alexandria.

3. Henry Lee III was a hero of the American Revolutionary War and politician (and father of Robert E. Lee). What was his nickname?

Answer: 'Light-horse ' Harry

Lee gained his nickname through his skills with horses. As a lieutenant during the Revolution he caught the eye of George Washington and moved quickly through the ranks. He once led a raid that netted 400 British prisoners. After the war he became Governor of Virginia and a member of the House of Representatives. He died of injuries in a mob riot sustained while defending a newspaperman accused of opposing the War of 1812.

He was the father of Robert E. Lee, Confederate general of the Civil War.

4. Poetry critics often speak of 'sweetness and light'. Sweetness are the words that portray the skilled use of rhyme, meter, and image. But what is 'light'?

Answer: something instructive

The term is attributed to Jonathon Swift but popularized by poet Matthew Arnold. Arnold defined "sweetness and light" as beauty and intelligence. These elements he believed made up "the essential character of human perfection."

In popular culture the term has a different meaning of ironically describing
an unexpected or insincere pleasantness. For instance, "My meeting with my boss was not all sweetness and light".

5. Miracles we see every day but we pass by without a thought. Turn on your table lamp. Who brought its glow to you?

Answer: Thomas Edison

Prior to Thomas Edison's break-through, some twenty-two inventors built or theorized on the development of a practical source of light. Edison's contribution was the first commercially practical incandescent light. Early bulbs had extremely short lives, high manufacturing costs, and used high levels of energy but Edison's bulb overcome these limitations.

In 1878, with help from both the J.P.Morgan and the Vanderbilts, Edison started the Edison Electric Light Company. Edison made the first public demonstration of his incandescent light bulb on December 31, 1879.

6. Remember your junior high science? According to scientific measurements, what is the speed of light expressed in miles per second?

Answer: 186,000 miles

1080 million is kilometers per hour; 671 million is miles per hour; 8.3 minutes is the time light from the sun reaches the earth.

How many of you have tried switching off the light and tried to get to bed before it goes out?

7. Although there may be others to make this claim, what city in most often referred to as 'the city of light'?

Answer: Paris

Paris is "La Ville-Lumi�re" translates to 'City of Light'. Paris is looked upon as a center of education and intellectualism. Also, it was the first major city in the world to adopt street lighting.

8. The aurora borealis emanates from the Arctic region of the planet. How are they commonly referred to?

Answer: Northern lights

Aurora occurs when energy from the sun sends off matter particles into space. This causes a reaction when they meet the planet's magnetic field creating a brilliant display of lights. A similar occurrence in the southern pole is called Aurora Australis or the southern lights. The phenomenon has been observed in planets with magnetic cores such as Jupiter, Saturn, and Mars.

9. "The Light that Failed" (1890) was a popular novel that told the story of a former soldier and painter who is going blind. Before he loses his vision he wants to create a masterpiece. Who wrote the novel?

Answer: Rudyard Kipling

The book was originally printed as a serial in "Lippincott's Monthly Magazine" in 1891. The protagonist of the story finds his model, not realizing that she is a notorious prostitute. She falls in love with him. When he realizes the social gulf between them, he rejects her.

A silent version was filmed in 1915. In 1939, Roland Coleman starred in the more accessible account with Ida Lupino as the woman.

10. She starred on the soap opera "One Life to Live" from 1977 to 1982 as a reformed prostitute. Later she was the lead in the sitcom "Who's the Boss?" (1984-1992) where she hires a male housekeeper. Her last name is Light. What is her first name?

Answer: Judith

Judith Light won two Daytime Emmy Award for "One Life to Live". In addition to "Who's the Boss", she won a Tony Award in 2011 for Broadway play "Lombardi" and won two consecutive Tony Awards for "Other Desert Cities" and "The Assembled Parties". She has had several well-received television performances.

Source: Author Rehaberpro

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor trident before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

To the Lighthouse Trivia Quiz

As an author's challenge, we will be examining aspects of light.

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