This year, instead of releasing all of the questions all at once, I am going to play with your brains a little bit and release them in doses. No, I am not starving for blog content. It will take me just a couple minutes to post something that has already been written, so if there are other newsworthy items that require my attention, like the Republican primaries tomorrow in Michigan and Arizona, I will of course cover them here. My schedule for the challenge will be as follows:
Today: Rounds 1-3
Tomorrow: Rounds 4-5
Wednesday: Semifinals
Thursday: Finals
Now, I know all of us live in a society that demands instant gratification, so I will be including the answers to all of the questions as part of this series. So, if you want to play the game right, cover up the answer as it scrolls on the screen and look at the question first. All of the questions were written either by yours truly or my co-coordinators of the RSPS It's Academic program: Mr. Bob Buchta and Mr. Kevin Sokoloff. If you have problems with any of the questions, I can tell you specifically that Kevin wrote the first 10 questions of every round, Bob the next 5, and I wrote the last 10. I wrote all of the semifinals, and the three of us collaborated jointly on the final round. The questions are structured a little differently than last year. Instead of just 20 toss-ups, the first 10 questions are split 5 and 5 so that each team gets an opportunity to get a few points before the toss-up questions begin. After the first 10, the final 15 questions of the round are all toss-ups.
Finally, before we begin, a congratulations to Team 2 from St. Louis School for winning the tournament yesterday, with the first runner up being Team 1 from St. Augustine and the second runner up being Team 1 from St. Louis. Special thanks to Josh, Jena, and her sisters for coming out to help us read questions, as well as to all of the readers who gave up several hours on Saturday to help us out. It was very much appreciated. And now, here are the first three rounds of the 2012 RSPS Academic Challenge!
Round 1 - Each answer is brought to you by the letter A
Team A
1) Great Britain fought which country over the Falkland Islands?
A: Argentina.
A: Argentina.
2) The Center for Disease Control identified a deadly illness called AIDS; what does the A stand for?
A: Acquired.
A: Acquired.
3) Name two of the three states that begin and end with the letter A
Arizona, Alabama or Alaska
4) What is the fear of spiders?
A: arachnophobia
5) Name the first Roman Emperor?
A: Augustus
Team B
1) In the movie Alive, what mountain range does the plane crash into?
A: Andes
2) Diamond is the birthstone of what month?
A: April
3) What term refers to the lowest possible temperature on the Kelvin Scale?
A: Absolute Zero
4) Into what body of water does the Amazon River drain?
A: Atlantic Ocean
5) In which country was Arnold Schwartzenegger born?
A: Austria
These next five questions all are related to famous pairs:
1. This is what you call a pair of ones when you roll a pair of dice.
Snake eyes
2. This famous pair were the first two people on earth, according to Genesis.
Adam and Eve
3. This pair of Italian-American brothers were plumbers, and joined Princess Pauline in over 50 games created for them on the Nintendo Entertainment systems.
Mario and Luigi
4. This pair of astronauts were the first two men to walk on the moon.
Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin
5. This pair of American songwriters created a string of Broadway musicals in the 40s and 50s, which include: Oklahoma, South Pacific, The King and I, and The Sound of Music.
Rodgers and Hammerstein
It’s Academic Questions 16-25 Round 1 -
16) What is the longest suspension bridge in America, connecting the boroughs of Staten Island and Brooklyn in New York City?
-Verrazano Narrows Bridge
17) The big winner at this past year’s Grammy Awards was Adele, taking home 6 awards including Album of the Year and Record of the Year for her song “Rolling in the Deep.” From what album is “Rolling in the Deep?”
-21
18) What is Adele’s first and last name?
-Adele Adkins
18) Nominally, how many bytes are in a terabyte?
-1 trillion
-1 trillion
19) Reduce the fraction 125/625 to least terms.
1/5
20) Before this season, the last time the NBA locked out its players was in 1998-99. That year, the San Antonio Spurs won the title in a 50-game season featuring “The Admiral:” David Robinson. Where did David Robinson go to college?
-US Naval Academy
21) The Great Lakes all ultimately drain into what river, which leads directly to the Atlantic Ocean?
-St. Lawrence River
22) Who is the Director of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital, one of the most famous doctors and surgeons in the world?
-Dr. Ben Carson
23) Organisms from the phylum Chordata all have what physical feature?
-A backbone (accept vertebra)
24) If you have the condition known as myopia what are you probably wearing right now?
-Eyeglasses (accept contact lenses)
25) What is the active ingredient in Windex, a chemical with formula NH3?
-Ammonia
Extra Questions round 1
1) With regards to electricity, what does AC stand for?
A: Alternating Current
2) What is the capital of New York?
A: Albany
3) If you were born on April 1st, what would be your Zodiac sign?
A: Aries
Extra Questions
1) How many square inches are in a square foot?
a. 144
2) On the color wheel, what two colors surround blue?
a. Violet and green
3) What is ½ of ¾?
a. 3/8
Round 2 The first part of this round is brought to you by the letter E---
Team A
1) What is the only land mammal that cannot jump?
A: Elephant
2) Every baseball position has a number, what is the number of the center fielder?
A: Eight
3) In the Bible, what book follows Genesis?
A: Exodus
4) Pantophobia is the fear of what?
A: Everything
5) On what lake would you find Cleveland?
A: Erie
Team B
1) What does the Richter magnitude scale measure?
A: earthquakes
2) What country would you go to see Stonehenge?
A: England
3) What is the capital of Scotland?
A: Edinburgh
4) How many lanes does an Olympic swimming pool have?
A: Eight
5) What is your birthstone if you were born in the month of May?
A: Emerald
No Bones About It: These following questions all deal with bones.
1. These are the pair of bones found in a human forearm.
Ulna and radius
2. This is the largest bone in the human body.
Femur
3. This is the smallest bone in the human body.
Stapes (accept stirrup) in the middle ear.
4. There are this many pairs of ribs in the average human body.
Twelve
5. This is the average number of bones in a human body.
206
Round 2 Questions 16-25
16) What American city is home to the Space Needle, and is also famous for its coffee and grunge music?
-Seattle
17) Under the rule of what emperor did Rome burn in 64 AD?
-Nero
18) In the history of US Presidents, there have been 5 surnames that have been owned by more than one president. Name 4 of the 5.
-Adams, Johnson, Harrison, Roosevelt, and Bush
19) The Second Vatican Council was opened under the direction of what pope?
-John XXIII
20) What iPhone or iPad app features the character OmNom, who has an unhealthy affection for candy?
-Cut the Rope
21) The group of stars known as the “Big Dipper” is actually just one piece of a larger constellation known as what?
-Ursa Major (accept Big Bear or Great Bear)
22) Who published the “95 theses,” which triggered the start of the Protestant Reformation in Europe?
-Martin Luther
23) In a football game, a team scored 2 touchdowns with the extra points, 3 field goals, and a safety. How many points did they score in the game?
25
24) The outermost layer of the sun is known as the what? It can typically be seen as a halo surrounding the moon during a solar eclipse.
-The Corona
25) Animal species that care for their young in pouches, such as kangaroos and koalas, are collectively known as what?
-Marsupials
Extra Questions
1) How many books are part of the Bible’s Torah?
a. 5
2) A 10-sided polygon is known as a what?
a. Decagon
3) How many legs does an arachnid have?
a. 8
4) Quito is the capital of what country?
A: Ecuador
5) Who said “Logic will get you from A to Z; imagination will get you everywhere.”
A: Einstein
Round 3 - The first part of this round is brought to you by the letter I.
Team A----
1) Scott Hamilton won Olympic gold for the USA on what surface?
A: Ice
2) What is the postal abbreviation for Idaho?
A: ID
3) In what country is Ciampino Airport
A: Italy
4) What is March 15 called on the Roman calendar?
A: Ides of March
5) What country is the Emerald Isle?
A: Ireland
Team B---
1) What famous race takes place in March and covers over 1000 miles in Alaska?
A: Iditarod
2) What Swedish company manufactures ready to build furniture?
A: IKEA
3) What does the I stand for in the acronym AIDS?
A: Immune
4) What Pixar film featured the Parr family, Syndrome, and Bomb Voyage?
A: The Incredibles
5) What world wide ban was introduced in 1990 to try and save the elephant population?
A: Ivory trading
Both teams may now participate. The next 5 questions deal with the board game Monopoly.
1) How many housing property squares are on a Monopoly board?
A: 22
2) How many different color groups are there in Monopoly?
A: Eight
3) How many different methods can a person go to jail?
A: 3
4) Which square is located between Pennsylvania Railroad and Community Chest?
A: St. James Place
5) What is the only colored set whose individual properties all include the names of U.S. states?
A: Red
Round 3 Questions 16-25
16) What is the capital of England?
a. London
17) In the play “Death of a Salesman,” who actually is the salesman?
-Willie Loman
18) Given the function f(x) = 3x – 5, what is f(10)?
25
19) What chemical is the primary pigment in human skin?
-Melanin
20) Keratin is a protein which is the main ingredient in which 2 body parts?
-Hair and nails
21) In the book (and movie) The DaVinci Code, what famous DaVinci painting is one of the clues Robert Langdon uses to solve the mystery?
-The Mona Lisa
22) In the moving “Finding Nemo,” what type of fish is Nemo?
-A clownfish
23) What confectioner is best known for its Hugs and especially its Kisses?
-Hershey
24) Lake Buena Vista is a town in Florida which is fully operated by what corporation, which owns several famous properties in it?
-Walt Disney Corp
25) In a tennis match, if a player has a score of “love,” how many points does he have?
-Zero
Extra questions
1) How many games does it take at minimum to win a set in tennis?
b. 6
2) How many rings are in the Olympic logo?
a. 5
1) 3) Yitzhak Rabin was Prime Minister of which country when he was assassinated in 1995?
A: Israel
2) 4) What civilization arose from the highlands of Peru in the early 13th century?
A: Incas
3) 5) What does ISP mean to a dial-up web-surfer?
A: Internet Service Provider
I hope you enjoyed these first three rounds. I'll be back tomorrow with Rounds 4 and 5!
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