Random Jottings, Part X Trivia Quiz

Answer: Consonants

There are 56 consonants, 42 vowels and 2 blank tiles, for a total of 100. All the vowels are worth one point, and the consonants range in value from one point, with the more uncommon letters include J and X, valued at eight points and the two ten-pointers being Q and Z.

The two blanks have no value at all, but are the best tiles in the game, because of their flexibility.

Answer: California

Lodi is a city located about two hours east of San Francisco, and is known for its white wine production. It is also the home of A & W Root Beer, which first went on sale in 1919.

The John Fogerty song put Lodi on the map. He admitted that he had never been to the city, but that he liked the name. 'Lodi' was on the flipside of the huge hit 'Bad Moon Rising'.

Answer: Arm

The cephalic vein runs from your shoulder to your hand on the outside of your arm, and the basilic vein parallels it inside your arm. Both drain parts of your hand and forearm. The cubital branches off the main cephalic vein at the inside of the elbow, and is the preferred vein to use when taking blood tests.

Answer: Yes

It is perfectly legal. The whole bat is considered as the bat, along with the handle and the batsman's gloves. Whilst it is legal, it is not really recommended, and the shape of the back of the bat would make it difficult to control where the ball could end up.

Answer: 3

'The Goon Show' was total nonsense, but also totally hilarious. Episode titles include "The Expedition for Toothpaste", "Where Do Socks Come From?", "The Building of Britain's First Atomic Cannon", "Ten Thousand Fathoms Down in a Wardrobe" and "The Dreaded Batter Pudding Hurler (of Bexhill-on-Sea)".

Milligan and Secombe both served in the British Army in North Africa and Italy. They met briefly, when Milligan somehow lost a rather large artillery gun. They later formed a comedy duo whilst still on service in Italy. Sellers joined the Royal Air Force (RAF), before being seconded into the RAF Gang Show entertainment. He met up with the other two in 1948, and the Goon Show magic was born.

Answer: Oxygen and silicon

The formula for quartz is SiO4, but is actually called silicon dioxide. Quartz has several varieties, including agate, onyx, jasper and amethyst. It has many uses, from jewellry to electronics, glass to toothpaste, and clocks to kitchen benchtops.

Carbon and oxygen in the simplest combination produces CO (carbon monoxide) and CO2 (carbon dioxide), both of which are gaseous at room temperature. One of the products of mixing sulphur with nitrogen is tetrasulphur tetranitride S4N4, which is used as an explosive.
Iron and magnesium do not form any compounds together.

Answer: Lyndon Johnson (US)

He made this statement in 1966, about halfway through the 20-year war, but despite his intent, the war dragged on. It lasted twice as long as WWI and WWII combined, and resulted in a Communist victory. USA and their allies (including Australia, New Zealand, Philippines and Thailand pulled out of the war in 1974, and the North Vietnamese quickly overran the South, who surrendered after Saigon was taken in April, 1975.

Harold Holt, the Australian Prime Minister in 1966-67, pledged Australian troops, equipment and bases to the Americans, borrowing Johnson's election campaign slogan of "all the way with LBJ". In 1967, Holt went swimming in heavy seas in Victoria, and has not been seen since.

Mao was the Chinese leader from 1943 to 1976, and supported the North Vietnamese cause, and would NEVER have uttered a quote like that!

France was the original European colonists of Vietnam, but were tossed out in 1954. They did not contribute to the Vietnam War.

Answer: 2

New Years Day on January 1 and Australia Day on January 26. It commemorates the arrival of the First Fleet on January 26th, 1788.

Answer: A song by The Monkees

The song, released in 1968, is about a unnamed charity trying to help a homeless man, however, he is quite happy with his position in life. The song was written by the very prolific team of Leiber and Stoller, who penned such hits as 'Hound Dog', 'Jailhouse Rock', 'On Broadway', 'Along Came Jones', and 'Yakety Yak'.

The winner of the 1958 Kentucky Derby was Tim Tam, who gave his name to a popular biscuit in Australia. The first Prime Minister of New Zealand was Henry Sewell, who was only in the position (then known as Premier), for 13 days.

Answer: False

The plant was named after a Czech missionary to the Philippines, named Georg Kamel. He wrote several papers about the flora and fauna of the islands, between 1699 and his death in 1706.