Miscellaneous Trivia

In land surveying, how long--in feet--is a chain? A: 66 feet.

What synthetic fabric, introduced in the 1970s, is made of Teflon? A: Gore-Tex.

If we saw the emblem know as a fylfot decorating a Byzantine structure, what would we most likely call it? A: A swastika. The Nazis adopted the ancient symbol as their emblem.

How did the inch-long 2-penny (or 2d) nail get its name? A: It was the nail that was sold at the rate of 100 for 2 pennies, or pence, in Great Britain in the fifteenth century, when the sizing system for nails was fist established. (The d in 2d is the British symbol for pence.)

Approximately how many blades of grass are there in an acre of lawn? A: 564,537,600--according to the Lawn Institute.

What did Aristotle believe was the main purpose of the human brain? A: To cool the blood.

In medieval days, how much did the average suit of armor weigh? A: Between 50 and 55 pounds.

In the children's rhyme that begins "Ding, Dong, Bell," who put Pussy in the well and who pulled her out? A :Little Johnny Green put her in; Little Tommy stout got her out.

How big is a cord of wood? A: It is 128 cubic feet and usually measures 4 feet high, 4 feet wide and 8 feet long.

Who was the first person to walk untetherd in space? A: Navy Captain Bruce McCandless II, 164 miles above the earth, form the space shuttle Challenger on February 7, 1984.

What did movie star Mary Pickford use to christen the first Hollywood-to-San Francisco bus in the early 1920s? A: A bottle of grape juice. Prohibition made champagne taboo.

In a bid to calm manic and psychotic juveniles, what color did California's San Bernardino County Probation Department paint its detention cells? A: Bubble-gum pink. Who said, "The great question...which I have not been able to answer despite my 30 years in research into the feminine soul, is "What does a woman want? A: Sigmund Freud.

What was the first hurricane named after a man? A: Bob, in July 1979. H put in a brief, blustery appearance on the Louisiana coast and then turned into an offshore breeze.

What great feat made Isaac Ban Amburgh a circus headliner in the late 1830s? A: He was the first animal trainer to put his head in a lion's mouth.

What incredible adventure did British seaman James Bartley survive while whale hunting in 1891? A: He spent two days in a whale's stomach after being swallowed alive--and then lived another 35 years to tell about it.

How many seats are there on a standard 747 jumbo jet? A: 420.

What gem was once considered a charm against drunkenness? A: The amethyst--which gets its name from the Greek amethysto9s--which means "remedy for drunkenness."

In the late 1920s, who arranged 200 golf balls in neat rows in the hollow of a fallen tree at a public golf course in Winnipeg, Canada. A: A gopher, in the mistaken belief that they were eggs and would make appetizing wintertime eating.

How many grooves are there on the edge of a quarter? A: 119.

How many letters are there in the Hawaiian alphabet? A: Twelve; vowels A-E-I-O-U; consonants H-K-L-M-N-P-W.

What is the only fifteen-letter word in the English language that can e written without repeating a letter? A: Uncopyrightable.

What is the largest amount of American currency one can hold without having change for a dollar? A: $1.19--three quarters, four dimes and four pennies.

What was a 13.5-carat diamond used for on the Pioneer 2 space probe to Venus in 1978? A: Instrument-viewing ports. It was the only substance that was both transparent to infrared light and also able to withstand the red--hot heat and tremendous pressure of the Venusian atmosphere.

Who was featured in the Playboy centerfold when the magazine made its debut in 1953? A: Marilyn Monroe.

What did the R in Edward R. Murrow stand for? A: Roscoe.

What is the source of the hair in most camel's hairbrushes? A: Squirrel tails.

Several American zoos have put up signs indicating "The Most Dangerous Animal in the World." where are they posted? A: Next to full-length mirrors--for the viewing public.

What was the name of Smokey the Bear's mate? A: Goldie.

Where are the Islands of Langerhans? A: In the human body--in the pancreas.

Why did the Smithsonian Institution develop a special perspiration and barnyard scent for one of their exhibitions.? A: To make their re-creation of a Maryland Sharecropper's house more realistic.

What unusual twosome spoke at ventriloquist Edgar Bergen's funeral in 1979? A: Muppet creator Jim Henson and Kermit the Frog.

Why is the phrase "the quick brown fox jumps over a lazy dog" used to check typewriters? A: It's a pangram--it contains every letter in the alphabet at least once.

The highest surface wind speed ever recorded was at Mount Washington, New Hampshire, on April 24, 1934. What was it? A: It was 231 miles per hour. (Winds become hurricane force when they reach 74 miles per hour.)

What is the highest rating given a top quality diamond? A: D-flawless.

What altitude does a vehicle have to exceed for its pilot and passengers to be officially recognized as spacemen? A: According to NASA 400,000 feet, or 75-1/4 miles, above the earth. What did the Apollo 8 astronauts use to fasten down tools during weightlessness on their 1968 moon-orbiting voyage? A: Silly Putty.

In what kind of store are you most likely to find Chilean nylons and Australian bananas? A: A fish store. They are species of shrimp.

All told, how many children sis Siamese twins Chang and Eng Bunker father? A: 22. Chang had 10; Eng, 12.

What does a vamp have to do with a shoe? A: It's the upper front part of a shoe.

What did Shirley Temple, Enrico Caruso, Irving Berlin, and Gene Tunney have in common? A: When they married, their blue-blooded spouses were kicked out of the Social Register.

What shade results when the rhubarb plant is use din hair dye? A: Blond. Its principal active ingredient is chrysophanol.

How many square inches are there in an acre? A:6,272,640. It's the number of square feet in a n acre (43,560) times the number of square inches in a square foot (144).

What is the maximum flight speed of a Boeing 747-300 jetliner? A: 583 miles per hour.

What was the greatest number of people ever carried on an airship? A: 207. they were aboard the U.S. Navy's Akron in 1931. The trans-Atlantic record is 117--held by the ill-fated Hindenburg, which exploded in May 1937.

According to Aristotle, what determined whether a baby would turn out to be a girl or a boy? A: Wind direction.

How many teaspoons are there in a cup? A: 48. There are 3 teaspoons to a tablespoon and 16 tablespoons to a cup.

Why did local environmental officials spray-paint 108 pink plastic flamingos white and place them in groups around marshes in the Everglades? A: To attract snowy egrets, white ibis and wood storks. The plastic flamingos were much cheaper than white egret decoys. What was the symbolism behind flying a flag at half-mast as a sign of mourning when the custom was first introduced at sea in the seventeenth century? A: The top of the mast was left empty for the invisible flag of death.

What are the names of the six Gummi Bears? A: Gruffi, Cubbi, Tummi, Zummi, Sunni and Grammi.

How are the monkeys Mizaru, Kikazaru and Iwazaru better know to us? A: As See No Evil, Hear No Evil and Speak No Evil, respectively.

If all the water were drained from the body of an average 160-pound man, how much would the body weight? A: 64 pounds.

What is the average life expectancy of a toilet? A: 50 years.

Which was the first Impressionist painting to be owned by the French government? A: Edouard Manet's Olympia which was bought through public subscription in 1890, seven years after his death. It is still owned by the Louvre.

What famous medal depicts three naked men with their hands on each other's shoulders? A: The Nobel Peace Prize.

What percentage of men are left-handed? How about women? A: 10 percent of men; 8 percent of women.

According to the Greek philosopher Aristotle, what part of the body served as the seat of the emotions? A: The liver.

What was the childhood nickname of Leslie Hornby, the English model and sometimes actress better known as Twiggy? A: Sticks. It's the nickname Twiggy was derived from, given to her because of her gangling appearance.

What are the six fields of endeavor for which Nobel Prizes are awarded? A: Physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature, peace and economic science, Economic science was added in 1969.

Nineteenth-century English physician Peter Mark Roget devised his famous thesaurus to help people find the right word. what equally useful tool did he develop for those searching for mathematical solutions? A: A special (log-log) slide rule. From what is rice paper made? A: The pith--the inner part of the trunk--of a small tree native to swampy forests of southern China and Taiwan.

What day is the middle day of the year-- in non-leap years? A: July 2nd. There are 182 days before it, and 182 after.

How much weight is saved when an airline doesn't paint an MD-11 jumbo jet? A: Almost 300 pounds.

What did prospectors in ancient times use to collect grains of gold from streams? A: The fleece of sheep--unlike the '49ers and other prospectors who panned for gold.

What was the average life span of a Stone Age cave dweller? A: 18 years.

What was used to erase lead pencil marks before rubber came into user? A: Pieces of bread.

How many points are there on a Maltese cross? A: Eight.

Why do federal park rangers working on the subtropical marshlands of south Florida wear snowshoes designed for use in sub arctic climates? A: the web-footed, wood-framed shoes keep them from sinking into the silty marhes.

How many dust mites can a gram of dust hold? A: 500 (an ounce can hold 13,500),

What inspired bareback rider Nelson Hower to introduce circus tights in 1828? A: His regular costume was missing--so he performed in his long knit underwear. Hower and other performers with the Buckley and Wicks Show normally wore short jackets, knee breeches an stocking. When their costumes didn't arrive in time for a show Hower improvised and changed circus fashions forever.

What high-fashion clothing designer spent two years in medical school before deciding to find another career? A: Italian style-setter Giorgio Armani.

What highly paid supermodel was valedictorian of her high school class and winner of a full college scholarship to study chemical engineering? A: Cindy Crawford. the college was Northwestern University. Crawford dropped out after just one semester to pursue a modeling career. An organization called SCROOGE was formed in 1979 in Charlottesville, Virginia. What does the acronym stand for? A: Society to Curtail Ridiculous, Outrageous and Ostentatious Gift Exchanges.

When Elizabeth Cochrane traveled around the world in less than 80 days in 1890, she used another name to conceal her identity. What was it? A: Nellie Bly.

Identify the following; It was insured for $140,000; Sime Silverman founder of Variety gave it its nickname; and it measured 2-5/8 inches from head to tip? A: Jimmy Durante's nose.

Who was Alexander the Greats' teacher? A: Aristotle.

Exactly how long is one year? A : 365 days, 5 hours , 48 minutes and 46seconds.

Who was the first inductee into the National Trivia Hall of Fame? A: Robert L. Ripley, who was inducted in 1980 into the honorary hall sponsored by Trivia Unlimited magazine of Lincoln, Neb.

"Uphold the Right" (Maintiens le Droit) is the motto of what law enforcement agency? A: The Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

What do the initials ,M.G., stand for on the famous British made automobile? A: Morris Garage.

When were vitamins first described, and who is credited with their discovery? A: In 1912; F.G. Hopkins and Casmir Funk.

What is the origin of the $64 question? A: It was the highest prize ever paid to a winner on radio's Take it or Leave it.

Canadian stagecoach-robber Bill Miner (The Gentleman Bandit), is credited for creating what classic line in a holdup? A: "Hands up."

What are the only two letters that are not on a telephone dial? A: Q and Z.

On what type of product would you find a message signed, "P. Loquesto Newman"? A: Actor Paul Newman's line of food products. The most common hat size for men is 7-1/8 what is the most common size for women? A:22. Although both are measured in inches, men's hats are sized according to diameter and women's according to circumference.

In earlier times, what building material did most Eskimos use to build their homes? A: Sod. Igloos, made of ice, were generally built only as temporary shelters.

How many sets of letters on the standard typewriter and computer keyboard are in alphabetical order--reading left to right, of courser? A: Three sets--F-G-H, J-K-L, and OP.

How much water does a 10-gallon hat hold? A: 3/4 gallon---or 3 quarts.

What was the only wood used by famed London cabinetmaker Thomas Chippendale? A: Mahogany.

How is Eleanor Thornton, secretary to British Lord Montagu of Beaulieu in the early twentieth century, part of automotive history? A: She was the inspiration for the Flying Lady statuette--known as "The Spirit of Ecstasy"--That graces the radiator of the Rolls Royce. Te original was created for Lord Montagu's Sliver Ghost by sculptor Charles Sykes in 1911.

Who has requested that her gravestone epitaph read, "Big deal! I'm used to dust"? A: Writer-humorist-homemaker Erma Bombeck.

In 1937, sewing machine heiress Daisy Singer Alexander put her will in a bottle and tossed it into the Thames River near London. Where an when did it wash up? A: On a beach in San Francisco, 12 years later. Under the terms of the will, the lucky beachcomber who found it inherited half of Daisy's $12 million estate.

Who was Grace Toof and how has she been immortalized? A: She's the woman that Graceland, Elvis Presley's estate in Memphis, Tennessee, is named after. Presley bought it from Ruth Brown, who had named it for her Aunt Grace.

What was the first word that the blind Helen Keller learned in sign language from her teacher Annie Sullivan? A: Water. Annie Oakley, in a demonstration of her incredible marksmanship, once shot at 5,000 pennies tossed into the air. How many did she hit with her rifle fire? A: 4,777--for an average of almost 96 percent.

What did comic genius Ernie Kovacs have installed in his California driveway to make maneuvering easier for visitors? A: An asphalt turntable, which made U-turns unnecessary.

In what year was January 1 first used to mark the beginning of the new year? A: In 153 B.C., by the Romans. Previously, New Year's Day was in March.

What Census Bureau category d9o you fall into if you are classified as a POSSLQ? A: Person of Opposite Sex, Sharing Living Quarters.

The four-leaf clover is considered lucky because of its rarity and symmetry. What about the even rarer five-leave clover? A: The superstitious consider it bad luck if kept--but good luck to both parties involved if given away immediately upon finding.

What is the size of the standard credit card? A: 3-3/8 by 2-1/8 inches.

What group's motto is "Blood and Fire"? A: The Salvation Army's.

What do the following crayon colors have in common--maize, raw lumber, lemon yellow, blue gray, violet blue, green blue, orange red, and orange yellow? A: They were the first colors ever dropped from the Crayola crayon line. They were replaced in 1990 with bolder colors--cerulean, dandelion, wild strawberry, vivid tangerine, fuchsia, teal blue, royal purple and jungle green.