Dog Days Trivia Quiz

Answer: Georgia

Tensions between the Georgian and Abkhaz people existed during the Soviet era, when the Abkhaz Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (Abkhaz ASSR) was a autonomous region of the Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic (Georgian SSR). In the 1980s, anti-Soviet Georgians began to demand independence, and based on the fact that an separate Abkhazian SSR had existed for a brief time in the late 1920s, many Abkhazians demanded their own independence.

The clash between the two groups culminated in the War in Abkhazia in 1992.

Although Abkhazia declared its independence that year, it was only formally recognized by six countries in 2008. These countries are Russia, Nauru, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Venezuela, and Nicaragua.

Answer: London

The Games took place mainly in the Olympic Park, which was built for this purpose in East London. Thirty-two new World Records were set, including five each from China, Great Britain, and the USA. Great Britain, the host, came fourth in total medal counts with 65, after the USA (104), China (88), and Russia (88), although the final rankings taking the class of medal into account pushed Russia into fourth place and GB into third.

This was the first time any city had hosted the Olympics for a third time. (London had previously hosted the Olympics in 1908 and 1948.)

Answer: Channel Tunnel

The Channel Tunnel runs beneath the English Channel for approximately 50.1 km (or 31.5 mi), connecting Folkestone, Kent, UK with Coquelles, Pas-de-Calais, France. It was formally opened by Queen Elizabeth and President Mitterand in May 1994, with trains commencing service for passengers in November that year.

Its depth varies, but its lowest point is situated 75 m (or 250 ft) below sea level. Travel services are provided by Eurostar trains and a Eurotunnel Shuttle service for vehicles.

Answer: Mark Antony

Although Mark Antony and Octavian were previously in the political union of the Second Triumvirate, eventually civil war erupted between them. Antony fell in love with Cleopatra, and returned to Alexandria with her, ignoring several summonses back to Rome.

The final battle of their war was the Battle of Actium, which was a naval battle between the navy of Octavian and that of Antony and Cleopatra. With their army destroyed, Antony and Cleopatra fled to Egypt, which was soon invaded by Octavian. Believing Cleopatra already dead, and having nowhere to run, Antony committed suicide by stabbing himself.

When he discovered his lover was still alive, he was brought to her and died in her arms. Cleopatra herself committed suicide barely two weeks later by allowing a asp to bite her.

Answer: Thirty Years' War

The Thirty Years' War was fought between 1618 and 1648, with most of the fighting battles taking place in Central Europe. Although it may initially have looked like a religious conflict between Catholics and Protestants, it developed into a more general international conflict. It ended with various peace treaties, termed the Peace of Westphalia, signed in 1648. While they ended the main conflict, the war between France and Spain lasted till 1659.

The Second Battle of Nördlingen was fought between the combined French and German Protestant armies of the Prince de Condé and the Vicomte de Turenne, and the Imperial and Catholic armies of Bavaria and the Holy Roman Empire. Although both sides lost similar numbers of men, the French and Protestants took Nördlingen and Dinkelsbuhl.

Answer: Sweden

Only one of Anna's children, her son Per, lived to adulthood, and the two had an incestuous relationship together. She arranged Per's marriage to Hanna Johansdotter, and it has been suggested that she did this to cover up any hint of the incest. Anna lived with the married couple, and Hanna complained that she was the cause of the unhappiness in the marriage.

It is thought by some that Hanna discovered the extent of the relationship between her husband and his mother, and so they conspired to murder her to prevent the news getting out. Both Per and Anna gave different stories at the trial, and it was later suggested that Anna committed the murder alone; indeed, although both were sentenced to death, Per's sentence was rescinded, and he was sentenced instead to hard labor for life.

However, he was released from this around 15 years later. Anna was executed in Kristianstad.

Answer: Quagga

Quaggas lived in South Africa, and were originally described as a distinct species called Equus quagga. However, many zebras or zebra-like animals had been described as their own species, so taxonomists had the job of determining which were actually the same species and which were separate. Unfortunately, before this could be completed adequately, the quagga was eradicated in the wild, and the last live specimen, which lived in the Artis Zoo in Amsterdam, Netherlands, unfortunately died in 1883, rendering the animal completely extinct.

Later, by studying quagga DNA, it was determined that it was not a separate species, but a subspecies of the plains zebra (Equus burchelli); because the quagga was named first, the scientific name of the plains zebra was altered to Equus quagga burchelli, while the quagga's name is Equus quagga quagga. The only living quagga that was ever photographed was a female that lived in London Zoo and the picture was taken in 1870.

Answer: Crossing the Berlin Wall

The Berlin Wall surrounded West Berlin, preventing movement between there and surrounding East Germany except at designated checkpoints, the most famous being Checkpoint Charlie. The Wall was 155 km (or 69.5 mi) in length, and the section between the two part of Berlin measured 43 km (or 27 mi). The erection of the wall in 1961 meant that families were split up, and although border guards around the Wall's perimeter were ordered to shoot defectors, many East Germans attempted to cross into West Berlin, including Peter Fechter and Helmut Kulbeik.

Unfortunately, while Helmut managed to cross, Peter was wounded as he scaled the wall, and left to bleed to death. The shooting was witnessed by many people, who could only watch as Peter fell back into the so-called "death strip" on the Eastern side, visible but unable to be accessed for medical treatment.

Answer: Helium

Helium was the first element to be discovered in space rather than on Earth, and for this reason, Pierre Janssen was ridiculed for his suggestion that it was a new element. Usually known in the French-speaking world as Jules Janssen, he built an instrument called a spectrohelioscope to analyze the radiation coming from the sun. Around the same time, English astronomer Norman Lockyer had also analyzed the sun's radiation, and reportedly both men's papers appeared at the French Academy of Sciences on the same day, therefore both received credit for first sighting helium - but only 30 years later, when Scottish chemist William Ramsay discovered a gas inside uranium ore, which turned out to be helium.

Answer: North Carolina

Initially, the land that became Franklin was offered in a cession from North Carolina to Congress, which was in large debt following the American War of Independence. The intention was that Congress use the land to generate income; however, North Carolina became wary about the offer, and rescinded it.

In 1784, delegates from the counties of this land declared the land a state independent of North Carolina, and they called it Frankland. They changed the name to Franklin after losing their petition for statehood, and even tried to rally the support of Benjamin Franklin (whom it was named for). Operating now as a de facto independent state, they established their own government; however, only a few years later, in 1786, the people were divided over whether to return the land to North Carolina. North Carolina offered to waive certain taxes if Franklin would rejoin it, and when the latter refused, the former moved in with troops and established its own government with the result that Franklin was for a time ruled by two administrations. Eventually, an armed conflict occurred between the two, and Franklin was defeated. By 1789, it was again part of North Carolina, but was soon afterwards ceded to the Southwest Territory, which became the State of Tennessee in 1796.