Quizzes & Puzzles 53

Some new problems with which to exercise the brain. But first a look at answers and solutions to Quizzes & Puzzles 52. New problems below the image (cartoon).

Answer to Quiz 52:1

If you have many disulphide bonds in your hair, what is the visible result?

The visible result is curls. @Sylv_Sylv knew this.

You can read more about hair in my old article Human Hair: Source of Male Strength or Femininity? In the article, I discuss hair as well as a part of cultural history, as of biology.

Answer to Quiz 52:2

What have these countries in common – give me a common denominator?

• Belgium

• Japan

• United Kingdom

• Tonga

• Denmark

They are all monarchies. Apart from that, it is quite hard to find common denominators for them.

Answer to Quiz 52:3

What is the commutative law of addition?

@Sylv_Sylv answered a+b=b+a, and that is right. In words, it says that the order of the terms in an addition is irrelevant for the result. There is an analogous law for multiplication.

Answer to Quiz 52:4

Which colour is said to precede black, as life precedes death, so much that this specific colour was sometimes seen as an omen of death?

It is green. Green is life and life precedes death. It was said that green preceded black, and it was taboo to wear green at a wedding, because then the next would be the black of mourning. Here you can read more about this and other ideas about green: Colours VI: Green in Focus – Religion, Life, Death, Sex, Witchcraft...

Answer to Quiz 52:5

In Star Wars, who is the father of Luke Skywalker?

Darth Vader.

Answer to Quiz 52:6

Why should you not take high dose antioxidants while you are undergoing radiation therapy for cancer?

Radiation kills a cancer cell by causing strong oxidation. High dose antioxidants would block that oxidation and, in fact, protect the cancer cell from the radiation that is supposed to harm or kill it.

@Sylv_Sylv, again, provided a correct answer.

If you want to learn more about oxygen, oxidation, free radicals and antioxidants, read my Oxygen: Life & Death – A Balanced View on Antioxidants.

Answer to Quiz 52:7

Five European countries have been world champions in football (soccer), while ten countries have been European champions. Which six countries have been European champions, but never world champions?

Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Greece, Portugal, the Soviet Union and the Netherlands have one European championship each, while none of them has ever won a world championship.

Incidentally, Germany and Spain have been European champions three times each, France and Italy two times each. However, these four countries have also been world champions – so they are not part of the answer to the question.

Answer to Quiz 52:8

July is named after Julius Caesar, August after emperor Augustus, but why is it not continuing? Why is September not named after the next Roman emperor in line, Tiberius?

Julius Caesar and Emperor Augustus were both murdered. Tiberius, superstitious to the core, and well aware of the fate of his two predecessors, refused to allow September to be named after him. He saw it as a bad omen to get a month named after oneself. However, it didn't save him, he was also murdered in the end.

If you are interested in calendars and months, I have several articles in my Index about that topic.

And now some new exercises for brain & memory...

Quiz 53:1

What is the name of the criminal genius, who appears as an enemy of Sherlock Holmes in some of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's stories?

In “The Final Problem” (published 1893), this man is introduced for the first time. Sherlock Holmes then says this about him:

“He is a man of good birth and excellent education, endowed by nature with a phenomenal mathematical faculty. [...] But the man had hereditary tendencies of the most diabolical kind. A criminal strain ran in his blood, which, instead of being modified, was increased and rendered infinitely more dangerous by his extraordinary mental powers. [...] He is the Napoleon of crime, Watson. He is the organiser of half that is evil and of nearly all that is undetected in this great city...”

Quiz 53:2

Which are most easily getting rancid, Omega-3 or Omega-6 fatty acids?

Quiz 53:3

Here is a list of cities - what do they have in common?

• Karachi

• Zürich

• Johannesburg

• New York City

• Shanghai

• Toronto

• Istanbul

Quiz 53:4

What is "the wheel of anxiety" referring to?

Quiz 53:5

This is a woodblock print by Kawase Hasui from about 1930. In the print you can see a mountain, which has been depicted in countless Japanese artworks. It has a special position in Japanese tradition. What's the name of this mountain?

Quiz 53:6

Who was the first Asian who received a Nobel Prize?

Quiz 53:7

Hair of the Dog and Biblical town, which rock band am I thinking of?

They never belonged to the absolutely greatest, but reached considerable fame in the middle of the 1970s, especially in Europe. According to information, the band is still active, although, with one exception, without the original members.

Quiz 53:8

Who are the Roman equivalents of the following deities from old Greece?

• Ares

• Hephaistos

• Zeus

• Aphrodite

• Poseidon

You'll find answers and solutions in the next “Quizzes & Puzzles”.

Quizzes & Puzzles has its own label in my Index, where all issues of the series can be found.

In my INDEX, you can find all my writings on Read.Cash, sorted by topic.

Copyright © 2022 Meleonymica/Mictorrani. All Rights Reserved

(Cartoon by Christian Dorn/Pixabay, CC0/Public Domain.)

(All the images are in the Public Domain.)