1.
American Novels and Novelists
One
of his books claims that the lesson most people learn from the Bible is,
"Before you kill somebody, make absolutely sure he isn't well
connected." He is best known for his science fiction, including a story
where alien abductors ask an Earthling about Charles Darwin and golf. All of his
books are from different publishers, and all of the publishers have gone out of
business. Name this fictional writer whose biggest fan is Eliot Rosewater. He
goes to a party with Billy Pilgrim in Slaughterhouse-Five.
ANSWER:
(Kilgore) Trout
2.
Chemistry
Which
classification system uses whether or not a substance accepts or donates protons
to determine whether it is an acid or a base? It is named after a Danish chemist
and an English chemist.
ANSWER:
Bronsted-Lowry
3.
Visual Arts/Man-Made Structures
Which
artist painted Jesus Christ crucified to an unfolded hypercube? This artist had
a flamboyant appearance that included a cape and handlebar mustache. Some of his
paintings include melting timepieces.
ANSWER:
(Salvador) Dali
4.
Algebra/General Math (30 Seconds)
What
is the square root of 1024? Your answer should be a whole number.
ANSWER:
32 (Accept plus or minus 32 or equivalent)
5.
Pop Culture
He
had a career 0.69 postseason earned run average and had converted 23 straight
postseason save opportunities. That was before Sunday, when he gave up two runs
in the bottom of the ninth inning in Game Seven of the World Series. Name this
New York Yankee relief pitcher.
ANSWER:
(Mariano) Rivera
6.
United States History
Name
the act passed in March 1941 that supposedly made the United States the 'arsenal
of democracy'. Though it at first only applied to Great Britain, it was extended
three months later to the Soviet Union. This allowed the United States to
transfer military goods and other aid to countries opposing Germany.
ANSWER:
Lend-Lease (Act)
7.
Religion/Mythology
Who
protected her infant son Horus from her brother Set? Her most important
functions included motherhood, marital devotion, healing the sick, and the
working of magical spells and charms, and she was married to her brother Osiris.
ANSWER:
Isis
8.
Physics (10 Seconds)
In
1971, this physicist theorized how black holes could have been formed by The Big
Bang. In 1974, he described how black holes could emit radiation, and this
radiation was named after him. Name this best-selling author of A Brief History
of Time who once made a guest appearance on The Simpsons despite his inability
to speak.
ANSWER:
(Stephen) Hawking
9.
Current Events
Which
corporation benefited from a ruling Wednesday saying that a five billion dollar
punitive damage ruling against it was excessive? This ruling stemmed from an oil
spill in 1989 near the coast of Alaska caused by the crash of the tanker Valdez.
ANSWER:
Exxon
10.
World Literature
Which
Greek writer appears in Plato's Symposium, telling a myth about a man-woman who
is split into two pieces? One of this writer's own comedies concerns an argument
in Hades between Aeschylus and Euripides in which they sharply criticize each
other's works. His other works include Clouds, Wasps, Birds, and Lysistrata.
ANSWER:
Aristophanes
11.
Precalculus/Calculus (30 Seconds)
There
are no parentheses in this problem--use the standard order of operations. What
is the derivative of five times x2 plus five divided by x2?
ANSWER:
10x-10x-3 (or 10x-10/x3, or students can add a negative
instead of using subtraction)
12.
Geography/Earth Science/Astronomy
Which
country borders Lithuania, Latvia, Russia, Ukraine, and Poland? Its location has
been tragic because it received much of the fallout from the Chernobyl nuclear
explosion. The territory's traditional capital was Vilnius, but the country's
current capital is Minsk. Name this country known as White Russia.
ANSWER:
Belarus
13.
Language Arts/Reference Sources
Sometimes
considered a synonym of armageddon, what noun is defined as a prophetic
revelation? Derived from the Greek word for uncover, it is associated with
Jewish and Christian writings in which God destroys the wicked and raises the
righteous to life. Give this word beginning with the letter A.
ANSWER:
Apocalypse (do not accept apocalyptic)
14.
Technology
This
was first proposed by Ronald Reagan in March 1983, and has been pushed by George
W Bush and Donald Rumsfeld. The original proposal was that space-based and
earth-based laser battle stations would shoot down Russian ICBMs. Critics have
claimed that the plan is unworkable, economically inefficient, and likely to
escalate the arms race.
ANSWER:
Star Wars (or SDI or Strategic Defense Initiative)
15.
Music
Which
rock group, popular in the early nineteen eighties, consisted of Stewart
Copeland, Andy Summers, and Gordon Sumner? Some of their albums included Ghost
In The Machine and Synchronicity, and their hit songs included Roxanne and Every
Breath You Take. Gordon Sumner is much better known as Sting.
ANSWER:
(The) Police
16.
Nonfiction
It
was published in two volumes in 1925 and 1927, and an abridged version came out
in 1930. By the end of the 1930s, over five million copies had been sold. Its
original title translates as Four and a Half Years of Struggle Against Lies,
Stupidity, and Cowardice. The first volume, dictated in prison, states what the
author wants revenge for, while the second volume gives his plan for achieving
revenge. Name this book whose title when translated from German is My Struggle.
ANSWER:
Mein Kampf (prompt on My Struggle)
17.
Geometry/Trigonometry (30 Seconds)
How
many petals will the rose have that is given by the polar equation r equals the
cosine of four theta?
ANSWER:
8
18.
American Dramas, Poems, and Short Stories
Which
1949 poetry collection contained portraits of a girl from the South Side of
Chicago at different stages of her life? It won a 1950 Pulitzer Prize for
Gwendolyn Brooks.
ANSWER:
Annie Allen
19.
Biology
Which
phase of mitosis consists of the separation of paired centromeres? This phase
takes place between metaphase and telophase.
ANSWER:
Anaphase
20.
World History
He
was born in 1869 and went to England to study law in 1888. Many of his first
jobs were in South Africa, and when he left a South African General declared,
"The saint has left our shores, I hope forever." Name this man who
first became famous opposing the Rowlatt Bills, which allowed the British to
imprison without trial those charged with sedition in India.
ANSWER:
(Mohandas Karamchand 'Mahatma') Gandhi
TIEBREAKER
QUESTIONS
Ties
are sudden death--the first correct answer ends the match. If a question from
the match needs to be thrown out, it should be replaced by the corresponding
question from the replacement packet.
This
is the name shared by two orders of mammals. They include tapirs, deer, and
rhinoceroses. Name this term for animals with hooves.
ANSWER:
Ungulate(s) (or Ungulata)
The
device this man is credited with inventing was actually developed in a cruder
form in China four hundred years earlier. Name the fifteenth century German
craftsman whose device was used without significant changes until the last fifty
years to mass-produce books and newspapers.
ANSWER:
(Johannes) Gutenberg
Spell
the six-letter word beginning with the letter Z that is a genus of flowering
herbs. Spell the word ZINNIA.