The Most Important 'C' People Trivia Quiz

Answer: Cyrus

Cyrus the Great (or Kurush, in Persian) was the founder of the Persian Empire after having succeeded his father, Cambyses I, in 558 B.C. Upon succeeding his father, Cyrus proceeded to overthrow the Medes, Lydians and Babylonians over the following decades. His empire was one of the greatest land empires in world history and the first large scale empire of the ancient world.

Answer: Copernicus

Nicolaus Copernicus (aka Mikolaj Kopernik, in Polish) was perhaps the most influential figure of modern Astronomy (though Galileo may have been equally, if not more important). His major work "De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium: On the Revolution of the Celestial Spheres" was first published very late in his life, and only first presented to him on his deathbed.

He was afraid that his ideas would be too controversial, and that he would suffer the wrath of the church once his ideas were disseminated widely.

It was only through the urging of his friend Georg Joachim Rheticus that Copernicus' work was ever published.

Answer: Cortés

Hernán Cortés laid siege to the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlán in 1520, a city that was soon renamed Mexico City. It seems that the Aztecs, led by their emperor Montecuhzoma (Montezuma II) believed Cortés could potentially be the god Quetzalcoatl, which weakened his response to the Spanish invasion led by Cortés. Cortés can arguably be considered the greatest of the Spanish conquistadors, though one could argue that Pizarro's conquest of the Incas was of greater importance and a more impressive achievement given the odds against his success.

Answer: Cheops

The greatest achievement of Cheops (or Khufu, as he was known to the ancient Egyptians) was the building of the Great Pyramid at Giza, the tallest manmade construct for nearly 4,000 years (until the erecting of the Eiffel Tower in the 19th century). For this simple fact alone, his name belongs in this quiz.

Answer: Curie

Marie Curie was born Maria Sklodowska, but emigrated from Poland to France where she married Pierre Curie. Marie was one of only two individuals to receive Nobel Prizes in two different fields (physics and chemistry; Linus Pauling being the other). With her husband Pierre, Marie did very important work in the study of radioactivity.

The Curies had two successful daughters as well. The eldest, named Irène, carried on the family work in the study of radioactivity and won a Nobel Prize jointly with her husband Jean Frédéric Joliot in 1935.

The younger daughter Ève was an accomplished author and musician.

Answer: Thermodynamics

These two names may not be of the household variety, but in consideration of their major contributions to the science of thermodynamics, they deserve a mention in this quiz. Nicolas Carnot could rightly be considered the founder of the science, with the publication of his seminal work "On the Motive Power of Fire" in 1824. If you're looking for another candidate for 'father of thermodynamics', how about Rudolf Clausius who, in 1850, enunciated the 2nd law of thermodynamics in his initial paper on the mechanical theory of heat (heat cannot pass from a colder to a hotter body).

Answer: Caesar

Julius Caesar is most well known for his military conquests of Gaul and the defeat of his rivals among the First Triumverate, Crassus and Pompey. Caesar is also known for his famous quotes and numerous writings, including the two mentioned above. The two selections mentioned are descriptions of the wars in Gaul and the civil wars within which he participated. Certainly they are worthy reads!

Answer: Caedmon

Caedmon lived during the 7th century A.D. and was a monk. Only a single, very short poem survives that can be attributed to him. He receives mention in the history of England created by Adam Bede, in which a divine dream inspired the one poem which we can for certain attribute to this mysterious figure.

Answer: Kong King

Kong Fu Zi is the honorable name Confucius received from later generations, signifying that he was a master/teacher. Kong Qiu was his birthname and Kong Zhong Ni was the stylized literary name that he took as a scholar. Kong King is King Kong in reverse...

Answer: Paper

Cai Lun is usually credited with the invention of paper, though he does not deserve the full credit. For more on his story see my quiz entitled "Everything was Invented in China!" Thank you for taking the time to try this quiz, please feel free to give me any comments regarding who I've missed on my list.

Some obvious ones are Christ and Columbus...I didn't want to make it TOO easy on you! Who else did I miss?