General Knowledge Quiz 74

Questions

1. A handwritten transcript of a coroner's inquest in 1881 that was rediscovered in Bisbee, Arizona, USA in 2010, revealed additional notes about what dramatic incident?

2. What is the process by which an insect undergoes distinct physical change from immaturity (typically larva or nymph) to adulthood?

3. What does a dipsomaniac crave?

4. Which castle is sometimes referred to as 'The Key to England'?

5. What is the name of the sister of Blanche DuBois in Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire?

6. The city of Lisbon in Portugal lies on which river?

7. Spaniard Juan Antonio Samaranch, who died in April 2010, was head of which organization from 1980-2001?

8. What chemical element's symbol derives from the Latin word aurum, meaning 'shining dawn'?

9. English economist and physician Nicholas Barbon helped to pioneer which type of insurance in 1666?

10. Where in the human body are the alveoli?

11. Which famous London institution was moved from Threadneedle Street to Paternoster Square on July 2004?

12. Dame Ninette de Valois, the eminent ballet teacher, director, and founder of The Royal Ballet and Birmingham Royal Ballet, was born in which country?

13. The religious slot Thought for the Day features in which BBC Radio show?

14. Derived from the Greek word meaning perimeter, what is the text form of the sixteenth letter of the Greek alphabet?

15. What colour is the diagonal cross on the national flag of Jamaica?

16. What Portuguese island suffered severe storm floods in February 2010?

17. Across Eastern Europe, the Middle East and parts of Asia, what are known as keftes or kufta, and similar words derived from Persian, kuftan, meaning beat or grind?

18. The structural integrity of the Howrah Bridge in Kolkata (Calcutta) India, which daily carries 60,000 vehicles and 50,000 pedestrians, was reported (2010) to be under corrosive attack from what?

    1. acid rain
    2. donkey urine
    3. bird droppings
    4. human spitting

19. In 2010, Asda (owned by Walmart bought the UK stores of which discount grocers for £778m?

20. What is the largest rough gem-quality diamond ever found (as at 2010?

21. FIDE (Federation Internationale Des Echecs is the world federation of which activity?

22. What is the process by which an insect undergoes distinct physical change from immaturity (typically larva or nymph to adulthood?

23. The structural integrity of the Howrah Bridge in Kolkata (Calcutta India, which daily carries 60,000 vehicles and 50,000 pedestrians, was reported (2010 to be under corrosive attack from what?

    1. acid rain
    2. donkey urine
    3. bird droppings
    4. human spitting

24. Which Lakota Sioux leader was shot dead by police in 1890 in a bungled arrest operation?

25. In 2010, Asda (owned by Walmart) bought the UK stores of which discount grocers for £778m?

26. Which three major sporting endorsees of Gillette coincidentally suffered unexpected failures in 2009/10?

27. In an electrical circuit diagram what is denoted by a circle containing the capital letter A?

28. Who became the ruler of Russia in 1964 until his death in 1982?

29. What internationally popular competitive activity features a 'Racing Homer'?

30. Amy Winehouse and the brand of which famous 1930s sportsman announced a joint collection in 2010?

31. What is the largest rough gem-quality diamond ever found (as at 2010)?

32. William Makepeace Thackeray's 1847 novel Vanity Fair, a satire of early 1800s British society, has the extended title, 'A Novel without a ...' what?

    1. City
    2. Hero
    3. Beginning
    4. Sex-scene

33. Name BP's catastrophic Gulf of Mexico oil rig, lost off the US Louisiana coast?

34. What Dutch Brewery arranged an 'ambush marketing' appearance of 36 orange-clad dancing women in the Denmark v Netherlands 2010 World Cup game audience, attracting complaints from FIFA, and massive publicity?

35. Which country's old name is Kemet, meaning 'black land', a reference to the fertile soil of its vast flood plains?

36. FIDE (Federation Internationale Des Echecs) is the world federation of which activity?

37. Name the Danish maritime explorer who served with the Russian fleet and gave his name to a Strait, a Sea, an Island, a Glacier and Land Bridge?

38. The suspension of what requirement was cited as the cause of a surge in UK houses coming to market after the 2010 general election?

39. What car company faced major problems over a sticking accelerator fault in 2010?

40. In chemistry and physics, volatility is the tendency of a substance to what?

    1. Explode
    2. Disintegrate
    3. Vaporize
    4. Smell bad

41. Which country's name, given by early foreign traders, refers to the precious metal silver?

42. Sir Joseph Paxton designed which notable 1851 Hyde Park building, re-located in 1854, where its name persists since accidental destruction in 1936?

43. In March 2010, which country passed a law banning all strip clubs and made it illegal for any business to profit from the nudity of employees such as topless waitresses?

44. Taurine relates to which animal?

45. Parkinson's disease sufferer Antanus Mockus is a notable political leader in which country?