Category: Brain Teasers

Trivia: In 2019, a funeral was held for which Mars Rover?

Dreamer
Spirit
Opportunity
Curiosity

Correct Answer: Opportunity

So why is this answer correct? : The Opportunity rover was launched in 2003, and was originally expected to wander the planet for no more than three months. However, it exceeded all expectations and continued to be operational until 2019, when it finally shut down during a planet-wide dust storm. NASA honored the rover with a touching funeral that included a transmission of a song to Mars, and even a poetic tweet from another Mars rover, the Curiosity.

Trivia: Who plays the astronaut trapped on Mars in the film “The Martian”?

Chris Evans
Liam Neeson
Matt Damon
Bruce Willis

Correct Answer: Matt Damon

So why is this answer correct? : Matt Damon’s characters have a reputation of being in need of rescue from distant places (see “Saving Private Ryan,” “Elysium,” and “Interstellar”). In the 2015 film “The Martian,” based on the Andy Weir book of the same name, Damon plays astronaut Mark Watney, who is presumed dead and accidentally left on Mars. The story tells of the ingenuity required to retrieve him.

Trivia: Where is Mars in order from the sun?

1st
3rd
4th
10th

Correct Answer: 4th

So why is this answer correct? : The order of the planets from the sun is Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and finally the dwarf planet Pluto. Despite its relative closeness as the fourth planet from the Sun, Mars is about 142 million miles from the sun. Additionally, Mars’ atmosphere is incredibly thin, meaning that much of the Sun’s heat easily escapes, and the planet can reach a staggering -​​225 degrees Fahrenheit.

Trivia: Mars is named after the Roman god of what?

The underworld
The sea
Love
War

Correct Answer: War

So why is this answer correct? : The planets of our solar system are named after the Roman gods: Venus is the god of love, and Neptune is the god of the sea. Mars’ reddish color was visible in the night sky to ancient peoples, prompting its naming comparison to Mars, the Roman god of war.

Trivia: Mars appears to be what color?

Blue
Green
Red
White

Correct Answer: Red

So why is this answer correct? : Mars is known as the “red planet” because of its striking reddish hue caused by iron oxide particles on the planet’s surface. (Iron oxide is the same compound that makes blood red.) The sky on Mars often looks pink or light orange because the dust from the red soil blows into the planet’s thin atmosphere.

While most San Antonio-class amphibious transport docks are named after cities, one exceptions is LPD-26, which is named after which Marine veteran who later became a U.S. congressman?

Jim Inhofe
Norman Mineta
John Murtha
Charles Rangel
John Dingell

Correct Answer: John Murtha

The future class of ballistic missile submarines — scheduled to enter service in 2031 and intended to replace the aging Ohio-class submarines — will be named what?

Dallas class
Columbia class
Guam class
Poseidon class
Nautilus class

Correct Answer: Columbia class

Most of the guided-missile cruisers currently deployed by the U.S. Navy are named after what?

Overseas Territories
U.S. States
U.S. Presidents
Naval War Heroes
Famous Battles

Correct Answer: Famous Battles

Trivia: At age 16, Ben Franklin adopted what kind of diet?

Vegetarian
Intermittent fasting
Ketogenic
Kosher

Correct Answer: Vegetarian

So why is this answer correct? : In Benjamin Franklin’s memoirs, he noted that he became a vegetarian at the age of 16 after reading “Wisdom’s Dictates,” a collection of aphorisms by Thomas Tryon. Franklin was a philosophical supporter of vegetarianism throughout his life, although he dipped in and out of the practice, occasionally adding fish to his diet. He cited saving both time and money as benefits of vegetarianism.

Trivia: What name did Franklin give to his list of guiding principles?

Habits of Highly Effective People
13 Virtues
10 Other Commandments
The Four Agreements

Correct Answer: 13 Virtues

So why is this answer correct? : Ben Franklin wrote that, left to his own devices, he sometimes traveled down “unvirtuous roads,” and to avoid that he compiled a list of “13 Virtues.” He chose the number 13 because it fits into a calendar: He focused on each virtue for a week, and rotated through the list of 13 virtues four times throughout the 52 weeks of the year.