Aug 2 in History test BRAIN
47BC — Julius Caesar defeats Pharnaces II of Pontus at the Battle of Zela in Syria. According to Greek philosopher Plutarch (writing about 150 years later), Caesar commemorates the victory with the now famous Latin words reportedly written to Amantius in Rome “Veni, vidi, vici” (I came, I saw, I conquered). 1835 — Elisha Gray, American inventor, is born in Barnesville, Ohio. Best known for his development of a telephone prototype in 1876 (though Scotland-born Alexander Graham Bell wins the patent race that same year), Gray is also considered to be the father of the modern music synthesizer, and is granted more than 70 patents for his inventions. 1922 — Bell, 75, dies in Nova Scotia, Canada.
1909 — The Wright Military Flyer is bought by the US Army for $30,000. It is designated Signal Corps Airplane No 1, the world’s first military aircraft.
1914 — In Joncherey, northeastern France, French corporal Jules-André Peugeot, 21, and German lieutenant Albert Mayer, 22, die in a firefight — the first official casualties of World War 1 — a day before the German Empire formally declares war on France. 1921 — Enrico Caruso, 48, dies in Naples, Italy. The embalmed body of the great opera tenor is preserved in a glass sarcophagus at the Del Pianto Cemetery for mourners to view. In 1929, his wife Dorothy has his remains sealed permanently in an ornate stone tomb. 1932 — Peter (Seamus) O’Toole, actor (“Lawrence of Arabia”, 1962; “Goodbye, Mr. Chips”, 1969; “Venus”, 2006), is born in Connemara, Ireland.
1945 — Pietro Mascagni, 81, the Italian composer whose 1890 masterpiece “Cavalleria rusticana” caused one of the greatest sensations in opera history, dies in Rome.
1947 — Star Dust, a British South American Airways Avro Lancastrian airliner on a flight from Buenos
Aires, Argentina, to Santiago, Chile, with five crew and six passengers, crashes into Mount Tupungato in the Argentine Andes. The fate of the aircraft and its occupants remains unknown until 1998 when pieces of wreckage begin to emerge from the glacial ice. 2011 — SA agrees to a R2.4bn loan to Swaziland (Eswatini) — a quarter of what King Mswati III sought to avoid his country’s financial collapse. His reported demand that R400m be paid to him for getting the loan (a “finder’s fee”), causes outrage in the country. 2015 — Conwy, a walled market town in north Wales, appoints its first resident jester for over 700 years in an elaborate medieval ceremony in the main square. Russel Erwood, 34, is dubbed Erwyd le Fol (French for “fool”) after completing three challenges: juggling daggers blindfolded, balancing a sword on his chin and making a gold coin disappear during a conjuring trick. 1. What is the principal religion in Mongolia? A) Christianity, B) Shintoism, C) Buddhism,
D) Islam
2. Nicolas Maduro replaced who as president of Venezuela in 2013?
3. What “A” is a Latin term used to describe one’s former school or university?
4. Which musician composed and performed the songs “The Piano Man”, “We Didn’t Start the Fire” and “The River of Dreams”?
5. Which musical group provided backing vocals for the Paul Simon hits “Homeless” and “Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes”?
6. What “L” is the medical term for the voice box?
7. Who was the subject of the controversial 2019 TV series “Leaving Neverland”?
8. The Japanese artist Hokusai is famous for his 36 paintings of what Japanese landmark?
9. What sandwich spread and tinned pie manufacturer takes its name from a port in Uruguay? A) Pecks, B) Bovril, C) Fray Bentos, D) Redro
10. What “O” was a former child actor who starred in “Forrest Gump” and “The Sixth Sense”?
11. Jamie Lee Curtis made her film debut in which horror series? A) “Halloween”, B) “Nightmare on Elm Street”, C) “Child’s Play”, D) “Friday the 13th”
12. What botanical provides the traditional flavouring in gin distillation?
13. Name the famous opera house in Milan that opened in 1778 after a fire destroyed the previous opera house at that site.
14. Who is the only man to have served as both vice president and president of the US without having been elected into either role? A) Lyndon B Johnson, B) Jimmy Carter, C) Gerald Ford, D) Theodore Roosevelt 15. “The White Queen”, “The Red Queen” and “The Kingmaker’s Daughter” are a part of “The Cousins’ War” series written by which author?
16. “My Fair Lady” is based on the play “Pygmalion” written by which Irish playwright?
17. Which of these is another name for the snow leopard? A) Ounce, B) Pint, C) Yard, D) Inch
18. Which major sporting trophy is named after a seed merchant who introduced the idea of selling seeds in a packet? A) Davis Cup, B) Stanley Cup, C) Ryder Cup, D) Webb Ellis Trophy
19. With which sport would you associate the names Sepp Maier, Rene Higuita and Lev Yashin?
20. The island of Borneo is made up of three countries: Indonesia, Malaysia and what is the third? Answers on this page