General Knowledge Quiz: 50 Things Worth Knowing

General Knowledge Quiz: 50 Things Worth Knowing: questions and answers

Try to answer first, then tap a question to see the answer.

1. A farmer has 17 sheep. All but 9 run away. How many are left? 8 · 9 · 17

   9 – All but 9 means 9 stayed. Read every question carefully, it gets sneakier!

2. Which weighs more: a kilo of feathers or a kilo of steel? The steel · The feathers · Same weight

   Same weight

3. What should you do if a pan of oil catches fire? Cover it with a lid · Pour water on it · Carry it outside

   Cover it with a lid – Water makes burning oil explode into a fireball!

4. How many minutes are in a full day? 1,240 · 1,440 · 2,400

   1,440

5. Which of these is a fruit, botanically? Tomato · Carrot · Potato

   Tomato – It grows from a flower and holds seeds, so it's a fruit!

6. Which organ filters your blood and makes urine? Kidneys · Lungs · Liver

   Kidneys

7. Which travels faster: light or sound? Sound · Same speed · Light

   Light – Count seconds from flash to thunder, divide by 3: that's the km!

8. At what temperature does water freeze in Fahrenheit? 32 °F · 0 °F · 100 °F

   32 °F

9. Which of these is NOT an insect? Ant · Spider · Bee

   Spider – Insects have 6 legs, spiders have 8!

10. Which gas do we breathe out more of than we breathe in? Oxygen · Nitrogen · Carbon dioxide

    Carbon dioxide

11. How many sides does a stop sign have? 6 · 8 · 10

    8

12. Which vitamin does your skin make from sunlight? Vitamin D · Vitamin C · Vitamin A

    Vitamin D

13. A compass needle points toward Earth's… Equator · Magnetic north · Nearest ocean

    Magnetic north

14. Which blood cells fight infections? Red blood cells · White blood cells · Platelets

    White blood cells

15. About how much of Earth's surface is water? About 50% · About 90% · About 71%

    About 71%

16. Which part of the eye controls how much light gets in? Retina · Lens · Iris

    Iris

17. Why is the sky blue? It reflects the ocean · Air scatters blue light · Sunlight is mostly blue

    Air scatters blue light – At sunset, light crosses more air, so the blue gets scattered away!

18. Which of these is a prime number? 53 · 51 · 57

    53 – 51 is 3 × 17 and 57 is 3 × 19!

19. Fold a sheet of paper in half 3 times. How many layers? 6 · 8 · 9

    8

20. Which metal conducts electricity best? Copper · Gold · Silver

    Silver – Copper is used in wires because it's almost as good and far cheaper!

21. What is the largest organ inside your body? Liver · Lungs · Stomach

    Liver

22. How much sleep do adults need, says most sleep research? 7 to 9 hours · 4 to 5 hours · 10 to 12 hours

    7 to 9 hours

23. What causes Earth's seasons? Distance from the Sun · Earth's tilted axis · The Moon's pull

    Earth's tilted axis – Earth is actually closest to the Sun in January!

24. How many teeth does an adult usually have, with wisdom teeth? 28 · 36 · 32

    32

25. What makes popcorn pop? Water turning to steam · Air inside the kernel · Oil soaking in

    Water turning to steam

26. Which part of a candle flame is the hottest? The yellow part · The wick · The blue part

    The blue part

27. Why do we have leap years? A year is ~365.25 days · The Moon slows down · To fix clock drift

    A year is ~365.25 days

28. Which shape do bees use for honeycomb cells? Square · Circle · Hexagon

    Hexagon – Hexagons hold the most honey with the least wax!

29. Which planet is, on average, closest to Earth? Venus · Mars · Mercury

    Mercury – Venus gets closest at times, but Mercury stays nearest on average!

30. A bat and ball cost $1.10. The bat costs $1 more. The ball costs? 5 cents · 10 cents · 1 cent

    5 cents – Ball 5 cents + bat $1.05 = $1.10. Most people say 10!

31. What does DNA stand for? Dinucleic amino acid · Deoxyribonucleic acid · Deoxynitric acid

    Deoxyribonucleic acid

32. How many bones are in one human hand and wrist? 27 · 19 · 35

    27

33. About how old is the Universe? 4.5 billion years · 100 billion years · 13.8 billion years

    13.8 billion years – 4.5 billion is the age of Earth!

34. Which food can stay edible for thousands of years? Rice · Honey · Salted fish

    Honey – Edible honey was found in ancient Egyptian tombs!

35. Which organ makes insulin? Pancreas · Liver · Kidney

    Pancreas

36. How long does the Moon take to orbit Earth? About a week · About a year · About a month

    About a month – That is where the word month comes from: moon-th!

37. Which element is the most common in the Universe? Helium · Hydrogen · Oxygen

    Hydrogen

38. Why do onions make you cry? They release a sulfur gas · Their juice is acidic · Their smell is too strong

    They release a sulfur gas – Chill onions first and they release much less of it!

39. Which is the only mammal that can truly fly? Flying squirrel · Sugar glider · Bat

    Bat – The other two only glide!

40. Why does ice float on water? Air bubbles inside · It's less dense than water · Cold things rise

    It's less dense than water

41. Which animal is the fastest on Earth? Cheetah · Peregrine falcon · Sailfish

    Peregrine falcon – It dives at over 380 km/h!

42. Which planet has the fastest winds? Jupiter · Saturn · Neptune

    Neptune – Over 2,000 km/h, faster than the speed of sound on Earth!

43. What is the smallest bone in the human body? Hyoid (in the throat) · Coccyx (tailbone) · Stapes (in the ear)

    Stapes (in the ear)

44. Which ancient civilization first treated zero as a number? Ancient Greece · Ancient India · Ancient Rome

    Ancient India – Brahmagupta wrote rules for zero around 628 AD!

45. Which gas makes up about 1% of the air? Neon · Argon · Helium

    Argon – There's about 20 times more argon than carbon dioxide!

46. At what height does space officially begin? 100 km · 10 km · 1,000 km

    100 km – It's called the Kármán line!

47. Which continent has no active volcano? Australia · Europe · Africa

    Australia

48. 23 people in a room: chance two share a birthday? About 6% · About 50% · About 23%

    About 50% – With 70 people it's over 99%!

49. Which animal can live the longest? Greenland shark · Giant tortoise · Bowhead whale

    Greenland shark – One was estimated at around 400 years old!

50. Which temperature is the same in Celsius and Fahrenheit? 0 · −40 · 100

    −40

51. Game show: you pick a door, the host opens a goat door. Switch? It makes no difference · No, stick with yours · Yes, it doubles your odds

    Yes, it doubles your odds – Switching wins 2 times out of 3!

52. How many times would you need to fold paper to reach the Moon? About 42 · About 420 · About 4 million

    About 42