Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. In the early 1950s Shirley Ardell Mason began psychological treatment with Dr. Cornelia Wilbur who diagnosed multiple personality disorder. Flora Rheta Schreiber published a fictionalized account of the story which was made into an Emmy winning TV drama starring Sally Field and Joanne Woodward. Controversy over the diagnosis began when the book was published. Doctors familiar with Mason's case allege that Wilbur planted suggestions of multiple personalities. The records of Wilbur's treatment might clear up this long running controversy but due to medical confidentiality the records may never be made known. The title of the book and movie was the fictional name given to Shirley Mason, "______".
2. Identical twins were placed for adoption to different families but never told they had a twin. They met in 2004 at age 35 and found that they were separated as part of a nature/nurture study conducted by a couple of scientists. Then they discovered that the study was never completed and the records sealed until 2066. The twins wrote a book about their experience called "Identical ________"
3. This expert on biological warfare worked for the UK Ministry of Defense and was one of the UN's Iraq weapons inspectors in 2003. He doubted the existence of Iraqi WMD's and was "outed" as a BBC reporter's source, then required to testify before a Parliamentary committee. He was found dead and a government enquiry ruled his death suicide by drug overdose and cutting his wrist. Some doctors, including a former coroner, have challenged that finding. Those doubters, though, haven't had access to the full evidence in the case which was ordered sealed until 2070. In 2010 a new government released the report and findings but the supporting evidence remains sealed. Who was this unwilling whistleblower?
4. "Be careful what you wish for, you just might get it," sometimes applies to documents held in secret. When this famous American author and humorist died in 1910 he left hundreds of pages of autobiographical notes and instructions that they not be published for 100 years. The first volume was released exactly 100 years after his death and a second volume followed in 2013. Even with heavy editing, the autobiographical memories met with very negative reviews. What author of "the great American novel" kept the public waiting for a century to read memoirs that even his ardent fans find difficult to wade through?
5. Broken codes played an important part in the Allied victory in WWII. British Intelligence cracked the German code used by the Enigma cipher machine. This intelligence contributed greatly to numerous Allied victories. Churchill credited it with winning the war. What was the code name for this intelligence considered so secret that its existence wasn't made public until 1974?
6. In 1917 exotic dancer Margaretha Geertruida Zelle was executed by a French Army firing squad after being convicted of spying for Germany. The records of her interrogation and secret trial were sealed for 100 years. In 1985 author Russell Warren obtained access. Warren's biography, supported by others who have seen the files, claims that Zelle was innocent and may, in fact have been the victim of collusion between French and German intelligence services. By what professional name is Zelle known?
7. In June, 1940 a British ship sank with the greatest ever loss of life in the sinking of a British ship. Severely overcrowded with British troops and civilians being evacuated from France ahead of the conquering German army, the ship was struck by German bombs while departing the French port of St. Nazaire. Estimates of the number of victims vary widely from 4000 to 7000, in part due to the government's sealing of all records of the event until 2040 under the Official Secrets Act. What was the name of this tragically unlucky ship?
8. In 1955 a brilliant but schizophrenic MIT mathematician wrote to the CIA proposing his design for a cryptograph machine. The agency determined that the device would work but not up to their required standards of secrecy. After sending a reply turning down the design, the CIA classified the letters and buried them until 2012. What possessor of a beautiful mind tried to help the government keep its secrets?
9. In 1961 the fledgling administration of President John Kennedy supported Cuban refugees from the Castro regime in an attempt to overthrow the Communist leader. "Brigade 2506" a paramilitary group armed and trained by the CIA launched an attack that was quickly smashed by the Cuban military causing Kennedy great embarrassment. 50 years later, a memo was declassified which warned the administration of possible pitfalls in the planning of the operation. The invasion was named after the coastal area where the troops were put ashore, "The Bay Of _____"
10. Secret files, folders and dossiers are declassified on a frequent basis. Which of the following secrets is not one that's scheduled to be released during the twenty first century?
Source: Author
wilbill
This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor
gtho4 before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.
