The 10 quiz questions
Question 1 : In 1521, Martin Luther was declared an outlaw and heretic at a major political assembly. Which assembly was this?
Possible answers:
- The Council of Trent
- The Diet of Worms
- The Synod of Speyer
- The Diet of Augsburg
Explanation: The Diet of Worms was an assembly of the estates of the Holy Roman Empire held at Worms. Luther refused to recant there, pronouncing the famous formula "I cannot do otherwise". The Edict of Worms that resulted placed him under the ban of the Empire, forcing him to take refuge at Wartburg Castle.
Question 2 : In 1720, the ship Grand-Saint-Antoine docked at Marseille bringing a terrible epidemic. Which one?
Possible answers:
- Cholera
- Typhus
- Smallpox
- The plague
Explanation: This slave ship was returning from the Levant and was carrying contaminated goods despite an insufficiently respected quarantine. This epidemic caused between 50,000 and 100,000 deaths in Provence and was the last great epidemic of its kind in Western Europe.
Question 3 : On May 25, 1810, the inhabitants of Buenos Aires ousted their viceroy, marking the start of a major historical process. What event was this?
Possible answers:
- The beginning of the Argentine War of Independence
- The creation of the Republic of the Río de la Plata
- The proclamation of Chilean independence
- The founding of the city of Buenos Aires
Explanation: This event, known as the "Revolución de Mayo", is considered the starting point of Argentine independence. However, the formal independence of Argentina was only officially proclaimed on July 9, 1816, at the Congress of Tucumán.
Question 4 : Oscar Wilde was sentenced in 1895 to two years of hard labor. What was the reason for his conviction?
Possible answers:
- Financial fraud
- Defamation of the royal family
- Homosexual offence
- Treason against the British Crown
Explanation: Oscar Wilde was tried and convicted under the Criminal Law Amendment Act of 1885 which criminalized homosexual acts between men in Great Britain. His imprisonment in Reading Gaol inspired him to write "The Ballad of Reading Gaol". He died in exile in Paris in 1900, three years after his release.
Question 5 : The first film in the Star Wars saga was released on May 25, 1977. What episode number was it given in a later renumbering?
Possible answers:
- Episode I
- Episode III
- Episode II
- Episode IV
Explanation: George Lucas, having conceived Star Wars as a saga in several trilogies, the 1977 film was renumbered "Episode IV: A New Hope" upon its re-release in 1981. Lucas was absent at the premiere, being on holiday in Hawaii, convinced that the film would be a commercial failure. It nevertheless became one of the greatest successes in cinema history.
Question 6 : On May 25, 1963, an African international organization was created. Which one?
Possible answers:
- The African Union
- The Organisation of African Unity
- The African Economic Community
- The African Council of Nations
Explanation: The Organisation of African Unity (OAU) was founded in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, by 32 independent African states. It was dissolved in 2002 and replaced by the African Union. May 25 has since been celebrated as World Africa Day, also called African Liberation Day.
Question 7 : On May 25, 2018, Ireland approved an important social measure by referendum. Which measure was this?
Possible answers:
- The legalization of marriage for all
- The repeal of the constitutional ban on abortion
- The decriminalization of soft drugs
- The exit from the European Union
Explanation: The Irish referendum of May 25, 2018 approved the repeal of the eighth amendment of the Irish constitution, which prohibited abortion. With 66.4% favourable votes, this result marked a major social transformation in this historically very Catholic country. The law authorizing abortion came into force in January 2019.
Question 8 : In 1085, the city of Toledo was taken back from the Muslims by King Alfonso VI during a centuries-long historical process. What is this process called?
Possible answers:
- The Iberian Crusade
- The Reconquista
- The Castilian War
- The Restauración
Explanation: The Reconquista refers to the gradual reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula by the Christian kingdoms of the north over the Muslim kingdoms (taifas). Toledo had been under Muslim domination since 712, that is for 373 years. This process ended in 1492 with the capture of Granada by Ferdinand and Isabella.
Question 9 : The Dutch physicist Pieter Zeeman, born on May 25, 1865, received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1902. What discovery is he mainly known for?
Possible answers:
- Artificial radioactivity
- The photoelectric effect
- The splitting of spectral lines under a magnetic field
- The diffraction of X-rays by crystals
Explanation: Pieter Zeeman discovered in 1896 that the spectral lines of an element split under the effect of a magnetic field, a phenomenon called the "Zeeman effect". This discovery was fundamental for understanding the structure of the atom and the behaviour of electrons. He shared his Nobel Prize with Hendrik Lorentz, who had provided the theoretical explanation.
Question 10 : Christian Doppler presented a fundamental theory in physics in Prague in 1842. What phenomenon had he theorized?
Possible answers:
- The refraction of light in the atmosphere
- The Doppler effect related to the change in frequency of waves
- The decomposition of white light into a coloured spectrum
- The propagation of gravitational waves
Explanation: The Doppler effect describes the change in frequency of a wave perceived by an observer when the source or the observer is in motion. We observe it daily with the sound of an ambulance siren which changes pitch as it passes. In astronomy, this effect makes it possible to measure the speed of stars and to detect exoplanets.
