Category: Brain Teasers

Trivia: Which vehicle measurement tool was originally purchased separately?

Speedometer
Fuel gauge
Tachometer
Temperature gauge

Correct Answer: Speedometer

So why is this answer correct? : The speedometer, or the gauge that measures how fast your vehicle is going, now comes built into your purchase — but it wasn’t always that way. Without strict, modern road rules, vehicle owners traveled at their own pace, and the first speedometers were optional purchases. The speedometer was invented as early as 1888, but wasn’t officially patented until 1902. Beginning in 1901, speedometers were built into cars.

Trivia: What tool measures the intensity of an earthquake?

Speedometer
Radiograph
Microscope
Seismograph

Correct Answer: Seismograph

So why is this answer correct? : Seismographs are the instruments responsible for recording the intensity of earthquakes. Around the world, seismographs are installed directly in the ground and are used to both measure and record seismic activity as it occurs. Measurements are made by a seismometer, an internal pendulum that swings back and forth when the ground moves. Thanks to the seismographic network, scientists are able to measure the shockwaves around the world and prepare for future disturbances.

Trivia: What is the name of a sound-based system used to measure the ocean floor?

CPU
LOL
SONAR
ATM

Correct Answer: SONAR

So why is this answer correct? : SONAR, the abbreviation for Sound Navigation and Ranging, uses sound to map and measure the ocean floor — as well as help submarines and military vessels determine their surroundings. Active SONAR measures distance by emitting sound waves, which bounce off anything in their path and alert the operator of obstacles. Passive SONAR does not emit sound but instead gathers sound from the environment around the vessel. While SONAR is a helpful system of measurement for the vastly unexplored ocean, you don’t want to be too close to an active SONAR transmission — the sound waves can be as loud as 235 decibels, about twice as loud as the average rock concert.

Trivia: The tape measure was originally invented for what fashion item?

Dress shoes
Hoop skirts
Hats
Watches

Correct Answer: Hoop skirts

So why is this answer correct? : Thanks to the hoop skirt, the oversized fashion trend of the 1800s, we have tape measures. Hoop skirts were made using flat wire, which created the bell-shaped framework under the fabric. To make his job more efficient, wiremaker James Chesterman invented what he called a “Steal (sic) Measuring Chain” to survey the length of flat wire he used for the skirts. He continued to peddle his invention long after hoop skirts fell out of fashion. American inventor Alvin J. Fellows took the liberty of making his own adjustment to the tape measure — a “spring click” function that locked the chain in place at a specific measurement — and the modern measuring instrument was born.

Trivia: What substance inside a thermometer helps to gauge temperature?

Mercury
Radium
Peroxide
Water

Correct Answer: Mercury

So why is this answer correct? : The first thermometers were largely inaccurate, attempting to measure temperature using substances such as water (Galileo Galilei’s thermometer, 1593) and alcohol (Grand Duke Ferdinand II’s thermometer, 1654). It wasn’t until the invention of the mercury thermometer in 1714 that thermometers became more accurate. Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit, a German physicist, developed the idea of using mercury inside the thermometer to more accurately respond to temperature fluctuations. While useful, the toxic element has since been replaced in modern electronic thermometers.

Trivia: What is the basis of the acre measurement?

Distance between farms
Amount of corn in a bushel
Ability of a team of oxen
Size of a village

Correct Answer: Ability of a team of oxen

So why is this answer correct? : An acre (derived from the Middle English word “aecer” and Latin word “ager”) originated etymologically from the word “field”. This is because the acre was originally created to be equivalent to the area of land that could be plowed by a team of oxen in one day. While the amount of land that modern humans can plow in one day has exponentially increased, the name stuck for this particular moderately sized piece of land as a unit of measurement.

Trivia: Sailors used astrolabes and sextants to measure what?

Ocean depth
Temperature
Celestial objects
Weather

Correct Answer: Celestial objects

So why is this answer correct? : Astrolabes and sextants, while both instruments used by sailors to navigate using the stars, have slightly different functions. Astrolabes, used by both Greek and Arab sailors, were multi-purpose instruments that measured the altitude of celestial objects, determined latitude and longitude, and surveyed distance, among other objectives. A sextant, while similar, specifically measured the distance between two celestial objects for the purpose of navigation. Both were indispensable instruments on the high seas long before the days of satellite navigation.

Trivia: What does a protractor measure?

Sunlight
Angles
Water depth
Time

Correct Answer: Angles

So why is this answer correct? : Protractors, in use since the 13th century, are specifically used for creating and measuring plane angles. Protractors have also been used in a similar fashion to astrolabes and sextants — to observe heavenly bodies and plot the position of a ship. Nowadays, the people most likely to encounter a protractor are architects and geometry students.

Trivia: What does the Scoville scale measure?

Mass
Light-years
Electrical watts
Spiciness

Correct Answer: Spiciness

So why is this answer correct? : The spiciness of peppers is measured by the Scoville scale, invented by pharmacist Wilbur Scoville in 1912. This method of measurement uses Scoville Heat Units (SHU) to show how much capsaicin is in a pepper. The mild poblano has a rating of 2,000 SHU, while the current world record holder for spiciest pepper, the Carolina Reaper, comes in at 2,200,000 SHU.

The United States Army’s Nike Ajax — widely considered to be the first operational surface-to-air missile — entered service in what year?

1932
1944
1954
1960
1967

Correct Answer: 1954