1. The first powered, heavier-than-air flight was achieved on this date 110 years ago at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. Name the craft.
2. Jorge Mario Bergoglio was born on this date in Argentina in 1936. How is he now known?
3. What is the alkaloid extracted from the bark of the cinchona tree called?
4. On this date 85 years ago, three Indian freedom fighters committed an act to avenge the death of Lala Lajpat Rai. Name them and what did they do?
5. Relative to the size of the creature, which bird’s egg is the biggest of any living species?
6. According to legend, which city was founded by twins who had been raised by wolves?
7. In which present day continent did our upright-walking ancestors originate?
8. On August 17, 1977, what feat did the Soviet icebreaker NS Arktika achieve?
9. Which President wrote the American Declaration of Independence?
10. What is the main ingredient in glass?
11. What is the albedo effect with reference to our planet?
12. Which Asian Kingdom is celebrating its National Day today?
13. What is the biggest contribution of Paul Frommer to the blockbuster James Cameron film “Avatar”?
14. To the nearest whole number, what is the average temperature of a healthy human in Celsius?
15. What is the speciality of the frogs called dendrobatids?
Answers: 1. Wright Flyer; 2. Pope Francis; 3. Quinine; 4. Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev Thapar and Shivaram Rajguru assassinated British police officer James Saunders in Lahore, Punjab; 5. Kiwi; 6. Rome; 7. Africa; 8.It became the first ship to reach the North Pole ; 9. Thomas Jefferson; 10. Silica; 11. The reflectivity of the Earth’s surface; 12. Bhutan; 13. He created the language spoken by the Na’vi; 14. 37°; 15. Brightly coloured, they are the ‘poison frogs’.
