THE SOUTHWORTH PLANETARIUM

70 Falmouth Street Portland, Maine 04103

(207) 780-4249 usm.maine.edu/planet

43.6667° N 70.2667° W Altitude: 10 feet below sea level Founded January 1970

2021-2022: LXXVIII

"The surreal is but reality that has not been disconnected from its mystery."

-Rene Magritte

THE DAILY ASTRONOMER

Friday, February 4, 2022

Quiz # 18: Brain of Portland IV

It has returned! Our flailing attempt at a high-brow, uber-cerebral, intensely intellectual quiz about anything and everything under, above, to the side of and at a 35 degree angle to the Sun. Question topics cover everything from Anthropology to Zoology, including all the intermediate disciplines including mathematics, metaphysics and mythology. Of course, not every subject is covered because Horwindil -the same 20-sided die who chooses the program during our April Fool's show- selects each question topic. As a result, every question is picked fresh and plump from the probability fields for your dining enjoyment.

So, let us tarry no longer and proceed with the next Brain of Portland quiz!

1. The Battle of Thermopylae, the setting for the graphic novel and movie "300," was fought between the Persians and Spartans in the year ____________

a. 510 BCE

b. 480 BCE

c. 435 BCE

d. 410 BCE

2. How many protons are contained with an alpha particle (radioactive emission)?

a. 0

b. 1

c. 2

d. 4

3. The version of "Stabat Mater Dolorosa," performed in part by a boy's choir in the movie "Amadeus," was composed by ____________

a. Mozart

b. Salieri

c. Pergolesi

d. J.S. Bach

4. Which branch of philosophy is concerned primarily with the question of being?

a. Humanism

b. Existentialism

c. Epistemology

d. none of the above

5. Eros (the Roman Cupid) was the son of Aphrodite and _____________.

a. Ares

b. Hephaestus

c. Hermes

d. Apollo

6. In order for a tropical storm to be designated a "hurricane," its minimum sustained winds must equal ________ mph.

a. 60

b. 74

c. 78

d. 82

7. ______________ is the most populated city in South America.

a. Sao Paulo

b. Buenos Aires

c. Rio de Janiero

d. Lima

8. There are about ___________ different types of cells in the human body.

a. 110

b. 140

c. 170

d. 200

9. Which ONE of the following was not one of the three Fates?

a. Clotho

b. Lachesis

c. Atropos

d. Tisiphone

10. Capoeira is a combination of dance, martial arts and acrobatics that originated in ___________.

a. Portgual

b. Brazil

c. Madagascar

d. the Azores

ANSWERS

1. The Battle of Thermopylae, the setting for the graphic novel and movie "300," was fought between the Achaemendians and Spartans in the year ____________

b. 480 BCE

2. How many protons are contained with an alpha particle (radioactive emission)?

c. 2

An alpha particle consists of two protons and two neutrons and so is also known as a "helium nucleus."

3. The version of "Stabat Mater Dolorosa," performed in part by a boy's choir in the movie "Amadeus," was composed by ____________

c. Pergolesi

If the winter weather hasn't reduced you to tears, perhaps this will:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5GCgxG3S-8