Word To The Wise

Looking Glass World

US President Barack Obama will no doubt be hoping for a better press after hosting his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao this week than he did during his own visit to Beijing back in November 2009. Then, he found himself criticised in some quarters for kowtowing to the Chinese authorities. The breaking of bread this evening at a White House private dinner and then again later in the week at a fully blown state banquet by the leaders of the old and new superpowers will no doubt be governed by a heavy doss of realpolitik despite each country's simmering discontent with the other. The Americans may not be delighted at China's human rights record, nor pleased with the valuation of the Chinese currency the yuan, which they see as artificially low, while for their part the Beijing contingent come displeased over US arms sales to Taiwan and unhappy at America's public welcome to the Dalai Lama to its shores. Yet, each needs the other and honeyed words will be publicly exchanged. What is uttered and what is meant of course are two different things as Lewis Carroll's Humpty Dumpty observed when he asserted that 'when I use a word it means what I choose it to mean'. Nuance of meaning in diplomacy is of particular importance as none of the apparatchiks at work this week in Washington will need reminding. Interestingly, the English language that President Obama uses is famously a dab hand at incorporating foreign influences in the shape of words from other tongues and putting them to its own use. Take kowtow, realpolitik, nuance and apparatchiks as used above, which have their origins in Chinese, German, French and Russian respectively. Gazing into the uncertainties of the future it is a fair bet that English will be acquiring more Chinese words given the old adage that one definition of the difference between a dialect and a language is that a language is a dialect with an army and a navy. Inspired by this dose of etymology, today's Highly Questionable? quiz takes the form of an exploration of which other language has given English a number of words.       

Words Quiz
The following words commonly used in English have been absorbed from which other languages?
1 Guru?
2 Assassin?
3 Tycoon?
4 Fiasco?
5 Alligator?
Answers to our words themed quiz will be published on tomorrow's blog.
The author of the Highly Questionable? quiz and trivia blog, Harry Reid, is a freelance question setter, writer and blogger. He can be contacted at harryreid@btinternet.com.

Greatest Show On Earth

Five Ringed Circus?

Everything to do with the Olympics is a near orgasmic experience for the statistical obsessive. There's times to be recorded, records to be broken and enumerable other numbers to be crunched. Yet for the 115 members of the International Olympics Committee (IOC) - who granted London the honour of holding the Games - there are a few figures that should cause more than a little embarrassment. At least they would, had so many of the Golden 115 not disappeared into the vortex of self importance, sense of entitlement and greed that global sports event owners seem to almost inevitably tip into. Even by the narcissistic standards of overblown planet encompassing sports bodies - yes the IOC share Switzerland with FIFA as the base for their HQ mother ship - the stats below should raise a blush. As part of securing the 2012 Games, the London organisers have agreed to provide the Golden 115 and 'the Olympic family', for the duration of the Games with among other things:-

• 500 air-condition limousines, complete with uniformed chauffeurs and traffic free speed lanes, and
• 40,000 hotel rooms.

It should be noted that 'the Olympic family' does not include athletes, as they will be staying in their own Olympic village, nor god bless us, does it include anything as common as spectators. Rather the term relates to the staff, 'associates', family members and assorted hangers on of the blessed Golden 115.

Still, some good Olympic news has just been announced. Tickets for the actual events at London 2012 are going on sale on March 15th. Would be spectators have until 26th April to apply, and refreshingly it isn't being done on a first come first served basis as after the closing date there will be a ballot for tickets for oversubscibed events. Meanwhile Paralympic tickets become available on September 9th. Full details about how to apply for any of the 6.6 million tickets for Olympic events can be had at www.tickets.london2012.com.

All this excitement has prompted the Highly Questionable team to assemble an Olympic Trivia dollop, while below we provide the answers to yesterday's islands themed quiz.
Olympics Trivia Dollop
 1  In 2012 London will become the first city to host the Olympics for the third time.
 2  The United States is the only country to have hosted the Olympics four times. In the process it has deployed three different host cities, in the shape of Saint Louis, Los Angeles (twice) and Atlanta.  
 3  The Hungarian capital Budapest has waited a long time to host the Olympics after  initially being selected as the location of the 1920 Games. However, as punishment for it's role in the First World War as part of the then Austro-Hungarian Empire, Budapest was stripped of the event, with the honour passing to Antwerp in Belgium. Budapest hasn't subsequently been chosen as a host unlike Berlin, which was initially to have been the location for the 1916 Olympics, cancelled because of World War 1, which was later given the 1936 Games.
 4  Tokyo was the chosen venue for the 1940 Olympics which subsequently didn't take place due to the outbreak of the Second World War. Japan's major city was to wait until 1964 before getting another chance to welcome the world to 'the greatest show on earth'. 
 5  28 countries boycotted the 1976 Montreal Olympics in protest at the International Olympic Committee's decision not to ban New Zealand from the event following the ironically named All Blacks rugby team's tour earlier in the year to apartheid tarnished South Africa. The 27 African countries involved in the boycott were joined by one non African country in their stand, which was Iraq.
Islands Quiz Answers
The answers to yesterday's islands quiz are:-
 1  Hispaniola is the name of the island shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
 2  Jura was the Scottish island on which George Orwell wrote his dystopian novel 'Nineteen Eighty-Four'.
 3  Saint Helena was the small Atlantic island Napoleon was kept prisoner on by the British after his defeat at the battle of Waterloo. He remained there until his death some five and a half years after his arrival. 
 4  Cephalonia (also known as Kefalonia) was the name of the island on which the 1994 novel 'Captain Corelli's Mandolin' was set.
 5  The Isle of Man is governed by the Tynwald, the oldest parliament in the world that is still functioning.
The author of the Highly Questionable quiz and trivia blog, Harry Reid, is a freelance question setter, writer, and blogger. He can be contacted at harryreid@btinternet.com

The Wisdom Of Crowds

In most countries a street protest involving fifty people would scarcely get noticed let alone strike enough fear in the heart of the authorities to prompt them to respond by declaring a state of emergency. But then again, with a population of just 10,400, Tuvalu isn't in many respects like your average nation state. Last week the government of the tiny country in the south Pacific reacted to a fifty strong demonstration demanding the resignation of the island's finance minister Lotoala Meria, by banning gatherings of more than ten people for a period of a fortnight. All appears quite on the streets of Tuvalu's capital Funafuti, with no further disturbances reported anywhere in the world's third smallest country. Independent since 1978 and formerly called the Ellice Islands, Tuvalu has only the Vatican and Nauru above it in the Tiny Territories league and probably has been best known to stamp collectors and environmentalists concerned that Tuvalu is in danger of disappearing as climate change raises sea levels. To salute island dwellers everywhere today's Highly Questionable? quiz takes the theme of islands.        

Islands Quiz

 1  What is the name of the island that houses both Haiti and the Dominican Republic?

 2  On which Scottish island did George Orwell write his chilling book 'Nineteen Eighty-Four?

 3  Following defeat at the Battle of Waterloo, Napoleon was held prisoner by British authorities on which island until his death five and a half years later? 

 4  Which Greek island was the setting for 'Captain Corelli's Mandolin', the 1994 novel by Loius de Bernieres which in 2001 was turned into a film starring Penelope Cruz, Christian Bale and John Hurt? 

 5  The world's oldest parliament that is still sitting, the Tynwald, governs which island? 

Answers to the Highly Questionable? islands quiz will be published along with tomorrow's quiz questions.

Laughter Quiz Answers

The answers to our previous quiz, which took laughter as its theme, are:-

 1  Robin Williams played the titular role in the 1998 movie 'Patch Adams' which was based on a true story of a doctor who believed that humour had a serious role to play in medicine.

 2  Nitrous oxide is the chemical name of the anaesthetic which is popularly referred to as 'laughing gas'.  

 3  Frans Hals was the 17th century artist who created the painting we know as 'The Laughing Cavalier'.

 4  Neil Sedaka had a 1975 hit with the song 'Laughter In The Rain'.

 5  'Laughing my ass off' is the meaning of the abbreviation 'lmao' commonly used in phone text and internet messages.

The author of the Highly Questionable blog, Harry Reid, is a freelance question setter, writer and blogger. He can be contacted at harryreid@btinternet.com.

The Best Medicine

The recent launch by the University of Haifa of a degree in medical clowning was greeted in many quarters by cynical smirks. Yet new research into the effect of laughing on reproductive health should wipe the world weary smiles off a few oh so knowing faces. The international journal 'Fertility and Sterility' has just published research that seems to demonstrate that laughter significantly increases the chances of conception by women attempting to become pregnant through IVF. In the study quoted, of 219 women undergoing IVF, 36% successfully conceived when they had been entertained by a professional medical clown shortly after their womb had been implanted with an embryo. The corresponding rate of pregnancy amongst those who had had a chuckle free experience at the important moment was only 20%. The researchers suggested that laughter made such a dramatic difference because of its stress reduction qualities. So in delight that laughter really is the best medicine, Highly Questionable takes it as the theme of today's quiz. 

Laughter Quiz

 1  Which actor took the lead role in the 1998 movie 'Patch Adams' which was based on the life of a real physician who felt strongly that humour had much to contribute to the effectiveness of medical practise?

 2  What is the chemical name for the anaesthetic commonly known as 'laughing gas'?

 3  Which artist painted the famous 17th century picture known as 'The Laughing Cavalier'?

 4  Who had a chart topping hit with the song 'Laughter In The Rain'?

 5  In the abbreviation 'lmao', which is widely used in texting on phones and on internet posts, where the 'l' stands for 'laughing', what are the three other words which complete the phrase? 

Answers to our laughter quiz will be published along with tomorrow's quiz questions. 

Friends Quiz Answers

The answers to yesterday's friends themed quiz are:-

 1  The Rembrandts were the band that played the theme song of the hugely successful US TV comedy drama 'Friends'.

 2  Dale Carnegie was the author of the best selling self help book 'How To Win Friends And Influence People'.

 3  'The Golden Girls' was the classic US sitcom that had 'Thank You For Being A Friend' as its theme song.

 4  Harvey was the six foot three and a half inches tall rabbit whose name provided the title of the 1950 film starring James Stewart in which his character, Elwood P Dowd, had the outsized mammal as an imaginary friend.

 5  Queen were the British rock band who had a hit with 'You're My Best Friend', a track taken from their 1975 album 'A Night At The Opera'. 

The author of the Highly Questionable? blog, harry Reid is a freelance question setter, writer and blogger. He can be contacted at harryreid@btinternet.com.

Lean On Me

Standing In The Shadows

Imaginary friends in childhood are much more common than it has generally been believed, delegates at a psychology conference in London heard yesterday. Not only are they a far more widespread phenomenon than previously thought, but rather than being the preserve of the lonely or troubled child, imaginary friends are usually part of healthy psychological development, according to psychologist Dr karen Majors. She cited her own research in the area and quoted studies showing that in the US 65% of children up to the age of seven report having, or had, imaginary friends. Similar research in the UK has put the equivalent British figure at 46%. Dr Majors said her work with adolescents clearly showed that despite  fearing ridicule, disapproval or censure, and so being secretive about their relationship with imaginary friends, a significant number of teenagers had them. Celebrating both imagination and friendship, today's Highly Questionable? quiz takes friends, real or imagined, as the theme of today's quiz, while below you can find the answers to yesterday's bear quiz.      

Friends Quiz

 1  Which band sang the theme song of the US comedy show 'Friends'?

 2  Who wrote the best selling self help book 'How To Win Friends And influence People'?

 3  What was the title of the classic US TV sitcom which had 'Thank You For Being A Friend' as its theme song?

 4  What was the name of the rabbit (see above) which was James Stewart's character, Elwood P Dowd's, imaginary friend in the 1950 Hollywood film that took its title from the animal character?

 5  Drawn from their 1975 album 'A Night At The Opera', which British Rock band had a hit single with the track 'You're My Best Friend'?

Answers to our friends themed quiz will be published along with tomorrow's Highly Questionable? quiz.

Bears Quiz Answers

 1  Brown.

 2  'Jellystone' (although Yellowstone National Park is acceptable, as Yogi's fictional version is clearly a humorous reference to the real one).

 3  Theodore 'Teddy' Roosevelt.

 4  Elvis Presley.

 5  Winnie The Pooh.

The author of the Highly Questionable? blog and deviser of the quiz questions that appear on it, Harry Reid, is a freelance question setter, writer and blogger. He can be contacted at harryreid@btinternet.com.

Grin And Bear It

Congratulations to Paddington Bear creator Michael Bond who today celebrates his eighty-fifth birthday. The lovable figure Bond added to the pantheon of truly iconic characters in children's literature is himself a little younger than his maker having appeared in his first outing in the 1958 book 'A Bear Called Paddington'. Since then, Paddington has featured in a string of books, starred in a number of TV adaptations and been the subject of numerous pieces of merchandise. His global status can be judged from the fact that Google featured his image worked into their logo on their search engine page the day in 2008 that marked the fiftieth anniversary of the publication of the first Paddington book, while Warner Brothers are working on a live action movie featuring a computer generated image of the marmalade sandwich munching bear. Highly Questionable? salutes the duffel coat wearing Peruvian and his creator with today's quiz which takes the theme of bears.
Bear Quiz
1 What is the surname of the family that adopts Paddington on his arrival in London from 'darkest Peru'?
2 US cartoon character Yogi Bear lives in which American national park?
3 Children's soft toy teddy bears are named after which American president?
4 Who told us that he didn't want to be a tiger because they were too rough in his 1957 hit single 'Teddy Bear'?
5 Which bear lives in the Hundred Acre Wood?
Answers to our bear themed quiz will be published along with tomorrow's quiz questions.
National Holidays Quiz Answers
1 The fourth of July.
2 France.
3 Mexico.
4 China.
5 To mark the anniversary of the signing of New Zealand's founding document.


The author of the highly Questionable quiz blog, Harry Reid is a freelance question setter, writer and blogger. He can be contacted at harryreid@btinternet.com.

Big In Japan

Some countries hold national holidays to celebrate the throwing off of colonial yokes or the life of their patron saint, but Japan is surely unique amongst nations in designating a day to revel in the arrival at official adulthood amongst citizens shedding childhood and teenage ways. The annual National Coming Of Age Day was celebrated across Japan on Monday to mark the official majority of everyone who had turned twenty in the last twelve months. This year the event was shrouded in an air of anxiety as Japanese media lamented dramatic changes in the country's demography which is leading to a marked greying of the population. While this is a trend in many of the world's more developed nations, prompting hand wringing about how pensions and healthcare are to be afforded as ratios of the working age and retired parts of the population tilt, the shift in Japan is particularly marked. The birthrate is plummeting while adults of procreating age are eschewing marriage so that official figures project that 40% of Japanese will be over 65 by 2050. Realising that such thoughts probably weren't foremost in the minds of those downing their first legal sakis at the start of the week, the Highly Questionable? team decided to devote today's quiz to national holidays around the world.                 

National Holidays Quiz

1 Independence Day in the United States is celebrated on what date each year? 

2 Bastille Day is an annual national holiday in which country?

3 The Day of the Dead is marked every November across which country? 

4 For 2,000 years which country has held a national holiday called the Festival of Dragon Boats on 5th day of the 5th lunar month?   

5 Waitangi Day is a public holiday each February 6th in New Zealand held to commemorate what?
Answers to our national holidays themed quiz will be published along with tomorrow's quiz questions.

Money Quiz Answers

The answers to yesterday's quiz on the theme of money were:-

1 The Bank of England is the financial institution sometimes referred to as 'the old lady of Threadneedle Street'.

2 Estonia became the latest European country to adopt the euro as its currency when it became the 17th member of the euro-zone on January 1st of this year.

3 Thirty pieces of silver were paid to Judas Iscariot to betray Jesus Christ according to St John's gospel in the New Testament of the Bible. 

4 The Danish krone is the currency in Greenland as it is in the Faeroe Islands and Denmark itself. 

5 The Flying Lizards were the British band who had a surprise hit in the UK and USA in 1979 with their own unorthodox version of the song 'Money'.
The author of the Highly Questionable? blog, Harry Reid, is a freelance question setter, writer and blogger, He can be contacted at harryreid@btinternet.com.

Funny Money

Money. The folding stuff, dough, filthy lucre. It may make the world go round, and certainly is a sought after commodity, but dosh doesn't always get a good press as the 'root of all evil' Biblical tag attests. More contemporary headline writers reserve their acid tipped opprobrium for bankers who conjure with cash by morphing it into hedge funds and all manner of other mystifying financial schemes and 'products'. Perhaps the highest level of popular suspicion about Money Men concerns those who ply their trade in tax havens dotted around the world - places like Jersey, the Cayman Islands and Bermuda. Rightly so according to 'Treasure  Islands', a newly published book which investigates the exact nature of the 'services' these and similar places provide. With more than half the banking assets in the world routed through such destinations, with their mixture of secrecy and feudal politics, 'Treasure Islands' makes for compelling and disturbing reading in almost equal measure. Noting that equality isn't something these jurisdictions are fond of promoting we at Highly Questionable? devote today's quiz to money - funny or otherwise. 
'Treasure Islands : Tax Havens and the Men Who Stole The World' is by Nicholas Shaxson.  

Money Quiz

1 Which financial institution is sometimes referred to as 'the old lady of Threadneedle Street'? 

2 Which European country most recently adopted the euro as its currency?  

3 In the Bible, what sum was Judas Iscariot paid to betray Jesus Christ?

4 What is the legal tender in Greenland?

5 What was the name of the British band who in 1979 had a surprise hit in the UK and US with an unusual version of 'Money', the song first recorded in the 1950s by Barett Strong before being covered by a legion of acts including 'The Beatles', 'The Rolling Stones', 'The Who' and 'The Doors'? 

Answers to our money themed quiz will be published along with tomorrow's quiz questions.

Car Manufacturers Quiz Answers.

The answers to yesterday's quiz which took the theme of car manufacturers were:-

1 Uk.

2 Germany.

3 Sweden.

4 USA.

5 Italy.

The author of the Highly Questionable? blog, Harry Reid, is a freelance question setter, writer and blogger. He can be contacted at harryreid@btinternet.com. 

Ghost In The Machine

While your average citizen has long grown accustomed to being told their life is going down the drain because of something called 'the global economic crisis', there is seemingly an elite able to drive a coach and horses, or more correctly a luxury car, through the prevailing gloom. At least that seems to be the case judging from the latest sales figures from upmarket car manufacturers Rolls-Royce which show that in the past twelve months there has been a 150% increase compared to the previous year in the number of their vehicles that have been bought worldwide. Much of this has been driven by sales of The Ghost, their model with the most modest price tag. At £165,000 a time it is the least expensive of their lines and now accounts for three out of four Rolls-Royces bought. Muttering that it is indeed a funny old world, the cycle helmet wearing team at Highly Questionable? have taken the manufacturers of various types of upmarket cars as the focus of today's quiz.   

Car Manufacturers Quiz

In which country did each of the following manufacturers of upmarket cars begin operating:- 

1 Rolls-Royce?

2 Mercedes-Benz?
3 Volvo?
4 Cadillac?
5 Ferrari?

Answers to our luxury cars quiz will be published along with tomorrow's questions.

Musical Instruments Quiz Answers

The answers to our previous quiz which had the theme of musical instruments were:-

1 Soft loud.

2 Saint-Saens.
3 The lyre.
4 Antonio Stradivarius.
5 Four.

The author of the Highly Questionable blog, Harry Reid, is a freelance question setter, writer and blogger. he can be contacted at harryreid@btinternet.com.

The Iceman Cometh

Crystal Clear

Sculpting a series of musical instruments from solid blocks of ice and using them at a prestigious venue to perform music you have yourself composed isn't something that appears on many people's CVs. Yet for Norwegian composer and percussionist Terje Isungset it's all in a days work as he will be demonstrating to audiences this weekend at London's Sommerset House. During a series of six half hour concerts in a geodesic dome specially installed on a terrace outside the venue, which has been dubbed 'the urban igloo', Terje will be joined by singer and compatriot Lena Nymark in performances that have to be restricted to thirty minutes each because of the fragile nature of the instruments being used. These include ones carved from ice blocks the composer extracted from an ancient glacier and a frozen lake. We at Highly Questionable? take our thermals off to Terje, whose ninth and most recent album 'Winter Songs' we plan to download and listen to tonight. Today's quiz on musical instruments is dedicated to this Scandinavian musical pioneer.       

Musical Instruments Quiz

1 What does the piano's full name of pianoforte literally mean?

2 Who composed 'Carnival Of The Animals', a piece often used to introduce children to each of the instruments that feature in an orchestra? 

3 Having been credited with its creation, which musical instrument is Apollo, the Greek god of music, most associated with? 

4 Who was the maker of the violin known as The Molitor which in October 2010 was sold at auction for the world record price of $3.6 million?

5 How many strings does a bass guitar have?

Answers to our musical instrument quiz will be published along with tomorrow's quiz questions.

Witches Quiz Answers

The answers to yesterday's Highly Questionable witches themed quiz were:-

1 'The Crucible'.

2 Morgana Le Fay.

3 A familiar.

4 Cher.

5 The Rowan tree.

The author of the Highly Questionable quiz blog, Harry Reid, is a freelance question setter, writer and blogger. He can be contacted at harryreid@btinternet.com.

Taxing Spell



Stirring Up Trouble?

It seems that for witches in Romania life is something of a cauldron of toil and trouble. Under the repressive regime of Nicolae Ceausescu, whose dictatorship ended in 1989, they could be imprisoned under witchcraft banning laws. Now, the Romanian authorities have recognised their activities as legitimate but attached their new found rights to responsibilities by decreeing that they - along with fortune tellers, magicians, astrologers and driving instructors - must pay income tax for the first time. The response from several of the country's witches has to been to threaten their own type of charm offensive by casting spells and curses on Romania's politicians. While we wait to see if the Romanian stretch of the Danube turns blue, Highly Questionable? offers today's quiz on the theme of witches.

Witches Quiz

1 What is the name of the Arthur Miller play that draws parallels between 17th century witchcraft trials in Massachusetts with modern political witch-hunts?  

2 In Arthurian legend what was the name of the enchantress who plotted the destruction of Camelot?

3 By what name is a witch's companion and accomplice known?

4 Which famous US popular singer starred as a member of the coven in the Hollywood film 'The Witches Of Eastwick?'

5 In popular folklore which tree is said to have the power to ward off witches?

Answers to this witch themed quiz will be published along with tomorrow's quiz questions.

Spies Quiz Answers

The answers to yesterday's spy themed quiz were:-
1 Dutch.
2 John Le Carre.
3 Bulgaria.
4 'The Lives Of Others'.
5 Rosenberg.

Harry Reid, the author of the Highly Questionable? blog, is a freelance question setter, blogger and writer. He can be contacted at harryreid@btinternet.com

With My Little Eye



Culture Vulture?

So, fiendishly clever Zionist Machiavellian conspiracy weirdness or overcooked paranoia? One way to judge is to try something radical like examining the facts:-

(a) the Israeli secret service Mossad are a ruthlessly effective intelligence outfit whose covert methods embrace everything from the beyond the pale to the frankly bizarre - tennis clad  assassins anyone?

(b) a  vulture, like the one pictured, has been arrested in Saudi Arabia after landing in  a rural part of the country complete with a leg bracelet identifying it as the 'property of the University of Tel Aviv' and a transmitting device allowing the creature's movements to be tracked.

(c) a spokesperson for Tel Aviv University revealed that the vulture was part of a study of avian movements and breeding patterns in the region.

(d) Saudi media outlets denounced the vulture as a spy. After all a pattern was emerging, recently two other birds - another vulture and a pelican - with similar Tel Aviv University number plates had been similarly accussed after nosing around in Sudan.

(e) Mossad doesn't generally identify its actual operatives when on active service such as the bomb attacks on two Iranian nuclear scientists last month which left one dead and the other seriously injured after passing motor cyclists slapped adhesive explosives onto their cars.

All in all it goes to show that paranoia doesn't mean that all too real spooks aren't out to get you. With such a disturbing thought ringing in our minds we offer a spy theme to today's quiz.   

Spies Quiz

1 What nationality was Mata Hari, executed by the French authorities in 1917 following probably false accusations of spying for Germany during the First World War? 

2 Which author created George Smiley, the fictional British spy who appeared in several espionage themed bestsellers, was famously played by Sir Alec Guinness in a number of TV adaptations of the books and is set to be brought to life by Gary Oldman in a forthcoming film version of the novel 'Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy' due for release next year?

3 Agents of which country's secret police are generally believed to have murdered the writer and dissident Georgi Markov by injecting him with the poison ricin, administered from the point of an umbrella, as he walked across Waterloo Bridge in London in 1978?

4 What is the title of the German language Oscar winning film which traces the growing disillusionment of a Stasi officer conducting surveillance on his fellow citizens in cold war era East Berlin?

5 What was the surname of the American married couple who were executed in the USA in 1953 after being convicted of passing secrets concerning the atomic bomb to the Soviet Union?

Answers to our spy themed quiz will be published along with tomorrow's quiz questions.
Mountains Quiz Answers
The answers to the questions in our mountain themed quiz were:-
1 Mount Fuji.
2 Turkey.
3 Mount Olympus.
4 '127 Hours'.
5 Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia.

Man Mountain

Putin On The Style

Modern day Tsar, former KGB agent, current Prime Minister and once and future President, Vladimir Putin is very definitely the man in charge of Russia. Members of the new coalition government in troubled Kyrgyzstan are at pains to let him know that they know he is very definitely Cossack Number One by signalling their intention to name one of their mountains after him. The peak in question is one of the Tian Shan  range in the north of the country which rises to an impressive 14,587 feet. Despite being smaller than the 24,400 feet Peak Lenin in the south of the former Soviet republic, the gesture will be taken as an act of friendship by Putin who last week showed his chummy side by slipping the central Asian state a $200 million development loan. Impressed by all this camaraderie,  the Highly Questionable team have opted to take mountains as the theme of today's quiz.   

Mountains Quiz

1 An active volcano that is considered to be sacred, what is the highest mountain in Japan?  

2 Mount Ararat, where Noah's ark reputedly came to rest at the end of the great flood, is within the borders of which modern day country?

3 According to Greek mythology which mountain was considered to be the home of the gods? 

4 What is the title of the new film from 'Slumdog Millionaire' director Danny Boyle which centres on the true life experiences of mountaineer Aron Ralston who sawed off his arm with a blunt penknife to escape from a rock that had pinned him down? 

5 The song 'The Trail Of The Lonesome Pine', recorded by comedy duo Laurel and Hardy amongst numerous others, celebrates which mountain range in the United States?

Answers to the mountains themed quiz will be published along with tomorrow's quiz questions.

Birds Quiz Answers
The answers to yesterday's bird themed quiz were:-
1 A parliament.
2 Shooting three under par at a single hole.
3 Yellow (with pink eye lashes).
4 Charlie Parker.

5 The maid.

Four And Twenty Blackbirds

Theories abound as to why 5,000 blackbirds suddenly fell out of the sky on New Years Eve to die on the streets and roofs of the small town of Beebe in the US state of Arkansas. The fact that it was minutes to midnight lent an apocalyptic tone to the thoughts of those townspeople with Armageddon spotting tendencies. Others with a more scientific bent have suggested that a collision between the flock and end of year fireworks may have panicked and disorientated the birds. Meanwhile ornithologists working for the splendidly named Arkansas Game & Fish Commission have pointed out that as blackbirds have poor vision they may simply have started crashing into things after flying unusually low in an effort to avoid the fireworks. Still others believe that a thunderstorm or unusually heavy hailstones may have upset the birds. Avian post mortems, or necropsies, may yet reveal in the coming days that the cause of the strange incident may be down to some form of toxins the birds were exposed to. Such a possibility may go some way to explain why on Monday three hundred miles away in Louisiana a separate flock of some 500 blackbirds fell dead out of the sky. Such strange goings on have prompted the Highly Questionable? team's imagination to take flight by setting a bird theme for today's quiz.

Birds Quiz

1 The collective noun for a group of crows is 'a murder', what is the equivalent term for a group of owls?

2 An albatross is the name given by golfers to what score? 

3 Big Bird, the character from US children's TV show 'Sesame Street', is what colour?

4 Which American jazz musician had Bird as a nickname?

5 Who had their nose pecked off by a blackbird in the nursery rhyme 'Four & Twenty Blackbirds'?

The answers to our bird themed quiz will be published along with tomorrow's quiz questions.

Answers To California Quiz
The answers to the questions posed in yesterday's California themed quiz were:-

1 The Mamas and The Papas.

2 The Beach Boys.

3 Clint Eastwood.

4 Sacramento.

5 Mojave Desert.

California Dreaming

Hasta La Vista

Austrian born one time body builder turned all action movie star Arnold Schwarzenegr today ends his tenure as the Governor of California. While it is arguable as to whether he or Ronald Regan were the most famous of the thirty-eight incumbents of this position, what is unquestionable is that it was Arnie that declared his candidacy with one of the most unorthodox pronouncements in American political history. Appearing on the high profile US TV show 'Tonight' he disclosed the soul searching he had been wracked by while pondering whether or not to run for office when he revealed 'it was the most difficult decision of my entire life -except the one in 1978, when I decided to get a bikini wax'. Highly Questionable? marks the passing of 'the Governator' with today's quiz which takes as its theme the State he ruled.

California Quiz

1 Who had a 1965 hit with the song 'California Dreamin''?

2 Who had a 1965 hit with the song 'California Girls'?

3 Which Hollywood film star in 1986 was elected mayor of the Californian town of Caramel which has a population of some 4,000 souls?

4 Which city is the capital of California?

5 Death Valley, home to the lowest, driest and hottest places in all of North America, is located in which southern Californian desert?

 Answers will be published along with tomorrow's quiz questions.

Answers To People Of The Year Quiz

The answers to our most recent quiz, which had the theme of People Of The Year, were:- 

1 Wallis Simpson.

2 Lech Walesa.

3 The Computer.

4 Richard Nixon.

5 Charles Lindbergh.