Quiz for Earth Day

As you already know 22nd April is Earth Day. To celebrate the event, I added a few more questions and explanations to last year's quiz and took it up a notch in user-friendliness with an online quiz maker. Now you don't need to open the key in another window you just have to click through the quiz and your answers will be corrected. When you have finished doing it you will be given a certificate, which you can share on Facebook or on other social networking sites.

Quiz for Earth Day » Quiz Creator

Saint Patrick's Day

Today is an important day for Irish people all over the world. It is the day of Saint Patrick, who is the most recognized patron saint of Ireland. Saint Patrick was a Christian missionary, whose life and evangelising journey to Ireland became a legend. He was said to use the shamrock (or clover) as a symbol of the Holy Trinity. As a result, now the shamrock and the colour green are both worn to symbolize this legacy on Saint Patrick's Day. However, the day has become more than just celebrating an important figure; it is a general celebration of everything that is Irish. Do this simple quiz below to revise or develop your knowledge about Ireland and the Irish.

The Ireland Quiz » Quiz Creator

Happy Birthday Big Ben!

Big Ben (from here)

While the London Eye is the modern face of London, Big Ben remains to be the traditional icon of the city. In the olden days, whenever directors wanted to make it clear that a film was set in London they just put in a brief cut with the clock tower and there was no doubt about the location any more. (Well, occasionally a black cab or a double-decker bus is also added but it is a bit overdoing it, isn't it?) Strictly speaking, Big Ben is not the tower or the clock but the great bell in the clock tower. However, nowadays it is quite common to refer to all the three with the same name. The famous bell celebrated its 150th birthday last Saturday. Happy Birthday!

A very brief history: A fire destroyed most of the Palace of Westminster in 1834. A new clock tower was constructed between 1843 and 1859; this is the tower that we can see today. The clock started ticking in May 1859 and the great bell first chimed on 11 July of the same year. The nickname Big Ben was probably given to the bell after Sir Benjamin Hall, who supervised the installation of the bell and whose name is inscribed on it.

Do this short quiz about Big Ben to learn some more facts about it:

1. How tall is the clock tower?
a, 65 meters
b, 96 meters
c, 112 meters

2. How much does the Great Bell weigh in tonnes?
a, 6.9 tonnes
b, 10.2 tonnes
c, 13,7 tonnes

3. What is the length of the hour hands?
a, 1.4 meters
b, 2.7 meters
c, 4.2 meters

4. What is the length of the minute hands?
a, 1.4 meters
b, 2.7 meters
c, 4.2 meters

5. How many clock dials are there on the tower?
a, only 1
b, 2
c, 4

You can check your quiz results here.

If you would like more information about Big Ben go to the official site.
(Wanna listen to the chime of the clock at noon? Click here)

Below is a list of scenes that feature Big Ben. If you know about some others just let me know and I will add them. (If possible give the link to the scene)


The 39 Steps
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JoxmOdC6c5c

Peter Pan, Return to Neverland
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7Dk4X2C13I

Doctor Who (the link below is for a video on how the scene was shot)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQNZO-OE8VU

Trainspotting
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtWj6SUhYPk

The Great Mouse Detective
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzsm068R3RA

Earth Day

The picture above is titled the 'Pale Blue Dot'. It was taken by the Voyager 1 space probe in 1990 from a distance of over 4 billion miles. The space craft was at the edge of the Solar System when Ground Control commanded it to turn back and take pictures of the planets it had visited. Captured in the light ray that cuts through the right side of the picture you will notice a tiny dot: Earth. (Provided you keep your computer screen nice and tidy:-) Both the idea for taking the distant photo and the title came from scientist and astronomer Carl Sagan. You can read his thoughts about the photo here and you can also see the version of the picture with Earth marked on it with arrows.

Why am I writing about all this now? Because this Wednesday is Earth Day. This is observed each year on April 22 and it is primarily designed to inspire awareness and appreciation for the Earth's environment. So, let's celebrate this special day with a quiz.(Not entirely on environmental facts, but about or planet, nevertheless.)

1. Which is true about our planet's distance from the Sun?

a, It's the second from the Sun.
b, It's the third from the Sun.
c, It's the fourth from the Sun.


2. How old is our Earth?

a, 5 million years old.
b, 12 million years old.
c, 4.5 billion years old.

3. Which is the largest ocean?

a, Pacific Ocean.
b, Atlantic Ocean.
c, Indian Ocean.

4. Which is the largest island?

a, Madagascar.
b, New Guinea.
c, Greenland.

5. Which extinct bird lived on Mauritius?

a, The Phoenix.
b, The Emu.
c, The Dodo.

6. How old are the oldest trees?

a, 3000 years old.
b, 6000 years old.
c, 9000 years old.

7. Which is the fastest land animal?

a, Ostrich.
b, Giraffe.
c, Cheetah.

8. What is the percentage of oxygen in the Earth's atmosphere?

a, 18.
b, 23.
c, 33.

9. What percentage of the Earth's surface is covered in water?

a, 50.
b, 60.
c, 70.

10. Which is the longest mountain range on our planet?

a, The Himalayas.
b, The Rockies.
c, The Andes.

11. Which is the highest waterfall in the world?

a, Niagara.
b, Angel.
c, Iguazú.

12. Who was the first explorer to reach the South Pole?

a, Roald Amundsen.
b, Ernest Shackleton.
c, Robert Falcon Scott.


You can find the key here.


















Earthrise