The Daily Quiz

Dating back to the 11th century, which landmark was Sir Walter Raleigh's unwelcome home for 13 years?

• The Tower of London
• Windsor Castle
• Edinburgh Castle
• Hampton Court

The strategically vital Bab el-Mandeb Strait separates Africa from which peninsula?

• The Iberian Peninsula
• The Balkan Peninsula
• The Arabian Peninsula
• The Sinai Peninsula

The flap of tissue hanging at the back of your throat, which keeps food from going up your nose, is called what?

• The epiglottis
• The tonsil
• The larynx
• The uvula

Eratosthenes accurately estimated the circumference of the Earth while running which institution?

• The Library of Alexandria
• The Athenian Academy
• The Museum of Cairo
• The Lyceum

Which dynasty took control of Austria under Rudolf I and ruled in Europe into the 20th century?

• The Bourbons
• The Romanovs
• The Habsburgs
• The Hohenzollerns

The ancient Greek philosopher Aristocles is far better known by which nickname, possibly referring to his broad build?

• Socrates
• Aristotle
• Plato
• Epicurus

Now a Winter Olympic sport, snowboarding uses equipment originally marketed in 1965 under what name?

• The snurfer
• The slideboard
• The snow ski
• The glider

During the German occupation of which island is the fictional "Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society" born as an alibi?

• Jersey
• Guernsey
• The Isle of Man
• Sark

This brief period, known in French as "Cent Jours," ended in disaster for Napoleon.

• The Reign of Terror
• The Consulate
• The Hundred Days
• The Directory

In 1543, the Copernican model of the solar system eventually displaced the one named for which ancient astronomer?

• Aristarchus
• Hipparchus
• Eratosthenes
• Ptolemy

In 1626, which Dutch colonial governor famously bought Manhattan for goods worth 60 guilders?

• Peter Minuit
• Peter Stuyvesant
• Henry Hudson
• Willem Kieft

The Latin phrase "tabula rasa" is commonly translated as which empty surface?

• Clean sheet
• Empty vessel
• Blank slate
• Bare canvas

Which former Soviet republic borders Lithuania, Poland, and Ukraine?

• Moldova
• Estonia
• Belarus
• Georgia

In 17th-century London's bills of mortality, deaths from which cause jumped from 6 in 1664 to nearly 69,000 in 1665?

• Fire
• Smallpox
• Fever
• Plague

Which macabre yet whimsical artist drew the iconic animated opening titles for the PBS series "Mystery!"?

• Charles Addams
• Maurice Sendak
• Edward Gorey
• Tim Burton