From: stephen.w.perry@gmail.com   
      
   On Wednesday, February 21, 2024 at 3:14:57 PM UTC-5, Mark Brader wrote:   
   > These questions were written to be asked in Toronto on 2024-01-29,    
   > and should be interpreted accordingly.    
      
   noted   
      
   > On each question you may give up to two answers, but if you give    
   > both a right answer and a wrong answer, there is a small penalty.    
   > Please post all your answers in a single followup to the newsgroup,    
   > based only on your own knowledge. (In your answer posting, quote    
   > the questions and place your answer below each one.) I will reveal    
   > the correct answers in about 3 days.    
   >    
   > All questions were written by members of the Misplaced Modifiers    
   > and are used here by permission, but have been reformatted and may    
   > have been retyped and/or edited by me. The posting and tabulation    
   > of current-events questions is independent of the concurrent posting    
   > of other rounds. For further information please see my 2023-05-24    
   > companion posting on "Questions from the Canadian Inquisition    
   > (QFTCI*)".    
   >    
   >    
   >    
   > ** Game 1, Round 9 - History - Dark Corners of the '50s    
   >    
   > For many, the 1950s were a decade of peace and prosperity. But not    
   > everyone was so fortunate.    
      
   ok, show of hands, how many of you were alive in the 50s?  ok, how about the   
   1850s?   
      
   > 1. The democratic government of this country nationalized its oil    
   > and was consequently toppled in a UK/US-organized coup in 1953.    
   > The authoritarian regime that followed stayed in place until    
   > February 1979. Which country?    
      
   iran   
      
   > 2. In 1954, another CIA-orchestrated coup replaced the democratic    
   > government of Jacobo Árbenz with a long-lasting dictatorship.    
   > In which Latin-American country did that happen?    
      
   guatemala   
      
   > 3. A fight for independence in this African colony lasted from    
   > 1952 to 1960 and claimed 15,000 to 20,000 lives, including those    
   > of more than 1,000 supposed rebels executed by the British.    
   > What then-colony?    
      
   kenya [the mau mau rebellion]   
      
   > 4. What war, waged from June 1950 to July 1953, cost between    
   > 2,500,000 and 3,000,000 lives?    
      
   korean war?   
      
   > 5. 1,500,000 to 2,000,000 deaths resulted from a war of    
   > independence, which lasted from 1954 to 1962 and brought about    
   > the end of the French Fourth Republic. Name the then-colony.    
      
   algeria   
      
   > 6. Which Soviet leader sent in the tanks to crush the Hungarian    
   > rebellion in 1956?    
      
   nikita khrushchev   
      
   > 7. In 1953, a strongman overthrew democracy in Cuba and ruled as    
   > a corrupt and murderous dictator till 1959. He was born Reubén    
   > Zaldívar, but is better known by his chosen name, which is what?    
      
   batista [no relation to the professional wrestler, I hope]   
      
   > 8. From 1955 to 1959 the UK used torture and execution against    
   > insurgents in one of their colonies. A peculiarity of this    
   > struggle: the rebels were not fighting for independence, but    
   > for the right to join another European country. Name the island    
   > where this happened.    
      
   cyprus   
      
   > 9. The Castle Bravo test of a hydrogen bomb on 1954-03-01 resulted    
   > in radiation injury to Japanese fishermen, Pacific islanders,    
   > and American technicians as far as 100 miles away. Name the    
   > atoll where the test took place.    
      
   bikini atoll   
      
   > 10. In 1959, a particularly brutal secret police was established    
   > to terrorize and dispose of folks the dictator disliked. What    
   > country was home to "Uncle Gunnysack"; i.e., the Tonton Macoutes?    
      
   haiti   
      
   >    
   > ** Game 1, Round 10 - Winter Challenge Round    
   >    
   > * A. Literature    
   >    
   > A1. Maxim de Winter, the master of Manderley, is the brooding    
   > male protagonist of which classic novel of mystery and    
   > suspense?    
      
   rebecca   
      
   > A2. Which Shakespeare play opens with these lines?    
   >    
   > "Now is the winter of our discontent    
   > made glorious summer by this sun of York"    
      
   richard iii   
      
   >    
   > * B. Military History    
   >    
   > B1. When Napoleon and his army entered the abandoned city of    
   > Moscow in September 1812, it was their intention to spend    
   > the winter there. What prevented them?    
      
   numerous reasons, there were no officials to sue for peace,   
   no food or supplies, and fires were set city-wide so there would   
   be no shelter from the approaching winter   
      
   > B2. The Battle of Lake Peipus, fought in April 1242, is known as    
   > the Battle on the Ice for the fact that much of it was fought    
   > on a frozen lake. On the losing side of the battle were    
   > the Teutonic Knights. Who was the hero of the Russian side?    
      
   nevsky?   
      
   >    
   > * C. Entertainment    
   >    
   > C1. Who wrote and sang the song "Hazy Shade of Winter"?    
      
   simon and garfunkel   
      
   > C2. Name the country music legend known for introducing Elvis    
   > Presley to Colonel Tom Parker.    
      
   bob neal   
      
   >    
   > * D. Canadiana / Geography    
   >    
   > D1. Among Canadian cities with a population over 500,000,    
   > which has on average the coldest winters?    
      
   winnipeg?   
      
   > D2. The locality in Canada with the heaviest annual snowfall,    
   > averaging 637.9 cm, or 21 feet, is Woody Point, population    
   > 282. In which province is Woody Point?    
      
   newfoundland and labrador   
      
   >    
   > * E. Sports: Winter Olympics    
   >    
   > E1. In the history of the Winter Olympics, from 1924 to 2022,    
   > which country has won the most gold medals and the most    
   > medals overall?    
      
   united states   
      
   > E2. What country has hosted the greatest number of Winter    
   > Olympic Games?    
      
   united states   
      
   >    
   > * F. Science    
   >    
   > F1. During the period from approximately 1300 to 1850, average    
   > global temperatures dropped by as much as 2°C, particularly    
   > in North America and Europe. By what name is this period    
   > commonly known?    
      
    little ice age   
      
   > F2. What is the scientific word for the study of the behavior    
   > of materials at very low temperatures? It derives from    
   > the Greek word for frost.    
      
   cryogenics   
      
   > --    
   > Mark Brader | "I can direct dial today a man my parents warred with.    
   > Toronto | They wanted to kill him, I want to sell software to him."    
   > m...@vex.net | -- Brad Templeton    
   >    
   > My text in this article is in the public domain.   
      
   swp, in what is likely my final post from google groups   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)