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Quiz about Top Business History Events
Quiz about Top Business History Events

Top Business History Events Trivia Quiz


This quiz will list 25 of the top 100 most significant events in business history as compiled by The Street. These events helped shape not only the business world but our culture and environment in the US and abroad. CREDIT: www.thestreet.com

A multiple-choice quiz by Sprink1234. Estimated time: 10 mins.
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Author
Sprink1234
Time
10 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
77,325
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
25
Difficulty
Tough
Avg Score
13 / 25
Plays
2977
Last 3 plays: Guest 122 (0/25), Guest 106 (4/25), Guest 206 (3/25).
- -
Question 1 of 25
1. Number 1 - What World War II general was later responsible for the most significant event that not only changed the business world but changed nearly every facet of American culture? Hint


Question 2 of 25
2. Number 2- What company, founded in 1968, was responsible for developing the single-chip microprocessor in 1971?

Answer: (One Word (Is it inside yours?))
Question 3 of 25
3. Number 3 - The third most significant event occurred in 1913 after the death of billionaire J.P. Morgan. This event was an evolution to an 1863 event. What was it? Hint


Question 4 of 25
4. Number 4 - The Great Crash on October 29, 1929, became known as what? Hint


Question 5 of 25
5. Number 5 - Classified ads for work once read 'Help Wanted - Male' legally. What President signed the Equal Pay for Equal Work Act? Hint


Question 6 of 25
6. Number 6 - Of Henry Ford's many accomplishments, which of these was more significant to economic history? Hint


Question 7 of 25
7. Number 7 - During World War II, another industrialist helped the U.S. war effort by building ships as fast as he could. By 1942, he cut production time of a 10,000-ton Liberty ship from 1 year to 2 months. The next year, he could build them in 2 weeks. Who was he? Hint


Question 8 of 25
8. Number 8 - What major retailer and currently one of the largest employers in the world first opened in 1962?

Answer: (One Word (also known for its 'people greeters')
Question 9 of 25
9. Number 9 - After inflation was reigned in during the early 1980s, the stock market entered a period of growth in August of 1982. What do we call this (or any) period or stock market growth?

Answer: (Two Words (grab the answer by the horns))
Question 10 of 25
10. Number 10 - This inventor and entrepreneur practically defined the term 'cool' with his 1902 'apparatus'. Who was he? Hint


Question 11 of 25
11. Number 11 - Due to rising inflation and a stagnant economy what political election victory has been deemed a critical economic event in the 20th century? Hint


Question 12 of 25
12. Number 12 - What English economist's 1936 publication 'The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money' theorizes that government spending should increase during a slow economy and decrease and pay off debt during a good economy? Hint


Question 13 of 25
13. Number 13 - George Kennan, also known as Mr. X, predicted in 1947 that the Soviet Union would ultimately collapse. He was the head of the policy planning staff for what executive department? Hint


Question 14 of 25
14. Number 14 - The United Auto Workers staged their first sit-down strike in Flint, Michigan, in 1936-1937. Considered by many as the most important piece of labor legislation of the 20th century, what 1935 law legalized labor unions? Hint


Question 15 of 25
15. Number 15 - The start of this franchise in 1961 started a cultural revolution for quick, mass produced food. Can you name the restaurant or the franchiser?

Answer: ((don't think too hard - either is accepted))
Question 16 of 25
16. Number 16 - Long before Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak built an Apple computer, and long before Yahoo helped people surf the web, there was silicon in the valley. The first audio oscillator, Model 200A, was built in a garage by the founders of what company in 1938? Hint


Question 17 of 25
17. Number 17 - In 1909, Belgian-born Leo Baekeland introduced his invention polyoxybenzylmethylenglycolanhydride, phenol-formaldehyde for short, Bakelite for even shorter. This is an early form of what substance?

Answer: (One Word (an extremely common product))
Question 18 of 25
18. Number 18 - What tech stock's 1995 IPO was a catalyst to the internet stock explosion of the late 1990's? Hint


Question 19 of 25
19. Number 19 - President Franklin Roosevelt worked with Congress in the 1930's to pass a series of securities laws to help even the playing field in the markets. What agency was created to help enforce these laws?

Answer: (One Word (acronym accepted))
Question 20 of 25
20. Number 20 - This plan was first envisioned by President Truman and the bill was sent to Congress by President Kennedy in 1963. Two years later it became a pillar of President Johnson's Great Society and the bill was passed. By 1998, over 200 billion dollars is spent on this annually. What is it? Hint


Question 21 of 25
21. Number 21 - Microsoft reached an agreement in 1981 to provide its operating system to IBM for personal computers. What was this operating system?

Answer: (One or Two Words (several variations accepted))
Question 22 of 25
22. Number 22 - Though it was not the first creditor, what bank forever changed the way credit was issued with its credit card plan in 1958? Hint


Question 23 of 25
23. Number 23 - Philo Farnsworth invented it in 1927, but, due to legal matters, did not get to debut it to the world. It was not debuted until 1939 at the World's Fair in New York by another party. What is it? Hint


Question 24 of 25
24. Number 24 - After nearly a decade of a sour economy, the Federal Reserve gets a new chairman in 1979. He raised interest rates and lowered inflation. Who was he? Hint


Question 25 of 25
25. Number 25 - Selman Waksman, under contract with Merck, discovered the antibiotic Streptomycin. Though not the first antibiotic, this spurred the growth of the antibiotic in the drug industry. What disease did this antibiotic help doctors treat and resulted in a Nobel Prize in Medicine for Waksman? Hint



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quiz
Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. Number 1 - What World War II general was later responsible for the most significant event that not only changed the business world but changed nearly every facet of American culture?

Answer: Dwight D. Eisenhower

On June 29, 1956 President Eisenhower signed into law the creation of the Interstate Highway System. It was to be built over four decades at a cost of 130 billion dollars. The Interstates have affected or influenced nearly everything in the U.S. Think where we would be without them.
2. Number 2- What company, founded in 1968, was responsible for developing the single-chip microprocessor in 1971?

Answer: Intel

The first single-chip microprocessor, the 4004, was incapable of much more than simple arithmetic, but that changed very quickly with the development of faster and more complex chips. Today practically everything has a microchip which lands this at the number 2 spot.
3. Number 3 - The third most significant event occurred in 1913 after the death of billionaire J.P. Morgan. This event was an evolution to an 1863 event. What was it?

Answer: The Federal Reserve is formed

The Federal Reserve Act of 1913 created a central bank replacing the National Banking Act of 1863. The creation of The Fed along with political reforms gave the federal government a direct role in managing the private economy.
4. Number 4 - The Great Crash on October 29, 1929, became known as what?

Answer: Black Tuesday

Thursday, October 24 started the selling frenzy. The NYSE sold 12.9 million shares on Thursday, 9.3 million on Monday setting up a final 16.4 million shares sold on Tuesday. The Dow Jones hit bottom in July 1932. It did eventually get back to precrash levels - in November 1954!
5. Number 5 - Classified ads for work once read 'Help Wanted - Male' legally. What President signed the Equal Pay for Equal Work Act?

Answer: John F. Kennedy

Women earned 59 cents for every dollar paid for men. This legislation reversed this trend. In 1998, women's pay was over 76 cents per dollar - not perfect but much improved. Kennedy signed this bill in June, 1963, just a few months before he was killed.
6. Number 6 - Of Henry Ford's many accomplishments, which of these was more significant to economic history?

Answer: Ford introduces the assembly line

Along with the creation of the Federal Reserve, 1913 saw another event which changed the business world. Henry Ford introduced the assembly line method of manufacturing. This technique cut the cost of the Model T in half.
7. Number 7 - During World War II, another industrialist helped the U.S. war effort by building ships as fast as he could. By 1942, he cut production time of a 10,000-ton Liberty ship from 1 year to 2 months. The next year, he could build them in 2 weeks. Who was he?

Answer: Henry J. Kaiser

'Sir Launchalot' not only produced a great number of ships but also was a leader in employment. Employing nearly a quarter of a million people at one point, Kaiser managed to not only pay a higher wage but also provided good health care and child care.
8. Number 8 - What major retailer and currently one of the largest employers in the world first opened in 1962?

Answer: Walmart

Wal-mart, Kmart, Woolco (Woolworth), and Target all launched in 1962. Wal-mart became the largest retailer in 1991 surpassing Sears. In 1999, Wal-mart became the largest private employer in the world with 1,140,000 employees, or as they call them associates.
9. Number 9 - After inflation was reigned in during the early 1980s, the stock market entered a period of growth in August of 1982. What do we call this (or any) period or stock market growth?

Answer: bull market

Until the bull market of 1982, major foreign currencies, high-grade corporate bonds, gold, houses, farmland, and even postage stamps all outperformed common stocks since 1972. From August 17, 1982, the stock market grew at a steady pace until the crash of 1987. Still the U.S. economy was strong and the market recovered.
10. Number 10 - This inventor and entrepreneur practically defined the term 'cool' with his 1902 'apparatus'. Who was he?

Answer: Willis Carrier

Carrier's 'Apparatus for Treating Air' was patented in 1906. This device paved the way for advances in countless industries including film, tobacco, textiles, candy and many more. Carrier and six others founded Carrier Engineering in 1915. The air conditioner was originally intended for machines and industrial processes rather than people.

In 1922, centrifugal chiller was developed making it possible to cool large spaces.
11. Number 11 - Due to rising inflation and a stagnant economy what political election victory has been deemed a critical economic event in the 20th century?

Answer: Ronald Reagan (1980)

In the late 1970's the economy was stalled and inflation was rising. The government, long perceived as a solution since the depression, was beginning to look like the problem. Reagan's economic policies, often referred to as 'Reaganomics' were business friendly, although critics pointed out that this was at the expense of the laborer.

The economy grew under Reagan's administration, but with that, so did the deficit.
12. Number 12 - What English economist's 1936 publication 'The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money' theorizes that government spending should increase during a slow economy and decrease and pay off debt during a good economy?

Answer: John Keynes

Keynes theorizes that when unemployment is high, demand is collapsing, balancing the national budget should be the last priority. Likewise when the ecomony is booming, any debt should be paid off. Keynes advice was only half-followed in the U.S. as government spending was not cut during the good times until late in the century. Keynes was still one of the most influential economists of the 20th century.
13. Number 13 - George Kennan, also known as Mr. X, predicted in 1947 that the Soviet Union would ultimately collapse. He was the head of the policy planning staff for what executive department?

Answer: State Department

In July 1947, Kennan advised that the Communist system would collapse if it were not allowed to expand. It took four decades, but Kennan was proven correct. Only the State and Commerce Departments are in the Executive branch.
14. Number 14 - The United Auto Workers staged their first sit-down strike in Flint, Michigan, in 1936-1937. Considered by many as the most important piece of labor legislation of the 20th century, what 1935 law legalized labor unions?

Answer: Wagner Act

Known officially as the National Labor Relations Act, the Wagner Act required employers to recognize their workers' collective bargaining efforts. General Motors was forced to recognize the power of the union. The passing of this law also ensured union support for FDR in the 1936 election. The Taft-Hartley Labor Act and The Labor Management Relations Act are the same thing.
15. Number 15 - The start of this franchise in 1961 started a cultural revolution for quick, mass produced food. Can you name the restaurant or the franchiser?

Answer: McDonald's

Ray Kroc buys a hamburger stand owned by the McDonald brothers in California in 1961 for 2.7 million dollars - a steal in retrospect. He quickly expanded and in only a couple of years, 96 percent of American kids recognized the golden arches.
16. Number 16 - Long before Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak built an Apple computer, and long before Yahoo helped people surf the web, there was silicon in the valley. The first audio oscillator, Model 200A, was built in a garage by the founders of what company in 1938?

Answer: Hewlett Packard

Bill Hewlett and David Packard built the audio oscillator - a device used to test sound equipment - and called it Model 200A. Model 200B soon followed and Walt Disney ordered 8 units for use in the soundtrack production of 'Fantasia.'
17. Number 17 - In 1909, Belgian-born Leo Baekeland introduced his invention polyoxybenzylmethylenglycolanhydride, phenol-formaldehyde for short, Bakelite for even shorter. This is an early form of what substance?

Answer: Plastic

Bakelite was the world's first fully synthetic plastic. How many plastic objects are currently within your reach?
18. Number 18 - What tech stock's 1995 IPO was a catalyst to the internet stock explosion of the late 1990's?

Answer: Netscape

Morgan Stanley priced the browser's stock at 28 dollars per share. The first closing bell left the stock at over 58 dollars per share. Netscape is now part of the AOL Time Warner empire.
19. Number 19 - President Franklin Roosevelt worked with Congress in the 1930's to pass a series of securities laws to help even the playing field in the markets. What agency was created to help enforce these laws?

Answer: SEC

Securities laws that were passed include The Glass-Steagall Act, The Bank Act, The Securities Act, and The Securities Exchange Act.
20. Number 20 - This plan was first envisioned by President Truman and the bill was sent to Congress by President Kennedy in 1963. Two years later it became a pillar of President Johnson's Great Society and the bill was passed. By 1998, over 200 billion dollars is spent on this annually. What is it?

Answer: Medicare

Truman envisioned a low-cost hospitalization and medical insurance plan for the elderly financed through Social Security. The plan was reformed in the early 1980's in an attempt to reduce hospital stays and extraneous tests. The changes also encouraged the growth of the for-profit health care industry.
21. Number 21 - Microsoft reached an agreement in 1981 to provide its operating system to IBM for personal computers. What was this operating system?

Answer: MS-DOS

IBM ceded the license for all non-IBM personal computers. Do you think they'd like to have that now? The Quick and Dirty Operating System name was changed to MS-DOS.
22. Number 22 - Though it was not the first creditor, what bank forever changed the way credit was issued with its credit card plan in 1958?

Answer: Bank of America

Sears had been issuing credit since 1910. Diners Club members paid their bill off each month. Bank of America issued credit cards with monthly interest rates of 18 percent and credit limits of 300-500 dollars.
23. Number 23 - Philo Farnsworth invented it in 1927, but, due to legal matters, did not get to debut it to the world. It was not debuted until 1939 at the World's Fair in New York by another party. What is it?

Answer: Electronic Television

Farnsworth and RCA were in court for several years over patenting rights. Fransworth eventually won forcing RCA to pay him royalties. However, due to World War II, the electronic television did not sell well initially. The patents expired as the war ended and RCA was quick to market with televisions.
24. Number 24 - After nearly a decade of a sour economy, the Federal Reserve gets a new chairman in 1979. He raised interest rates and lowered inflation. Who was he?

Answer: Paul Volcker

The tradeoff was a 10 percent unemployment rate and a recession. Alan Greenspan took over in 1987.
25. Number 25 - Selman Waksman, under contract with Merck, discovered the antibiotic Streptomycin. Though not the first antibiotic, this spurred the growth of the antibiotic in the drug industry. What disease did this antibiotic help doctors treat and resulted in a Nobel Prize in Medicine for Waksman?

Answer: Tuberculosis

Waksman made the discovery after studying an infected chicken gizzard. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1952.
Source: Author Sprink1234

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