Terribly Trivial Trivia Trivia Quiz

Answer: A kind of stew

Our word hodgepodge is derived from the Middle English word "hotchpotch," which was a kind of stew made from a variety of different ingredients. Hotchpotch dates to the 14th century; the first known use of hodgepodge was in 1643.

Answer: Moldavite

Moldavite takes its name from the village of Moldauthein in the Czech Republic. It is thought that some 15 million years ago a huge meteor crashed in what is now Bavaria, scattering fused, glassy fragments over a large area of Central Europe. When it was first discovered, Moldavite was thought to be a form of obsidian, and of volcanic origin. Analysis of isotopes contained within it, however, confirms that it was created as a result of a meteor impact. Most Moldavite is a dark greenish-brown in color; a few examples are bright green and transparent, and are faceted into gemstones.

There is also a very rare form of peridot called pallasites that was formed inside meteors.

Answer: A bird

Liam Clancy (1935 - 2009) was an Irish folk singer and member of The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem, a group that was very popular in the 1950s and 1960s. Clancy had a beautiful tenor voice, and influenced a number of other singers, including Bob Dylan.

He died of pulmonary fibrosis on December 4, 2009. The bittern is a small, wading bird of the heron family. The title of the documentary is taken from a poem by the 18th century Irish poet, Cathal Buí Mac Giolla Ghunna, written in praise of drink: "Have you not seen this smooth-necked bird / That died of thirst a while ago? / So wet your lips, my neighbors dear / There won't be a drop when you're dead and gone."

Answer: True

It has never happened, but it could happen. The situation would have to be as follows: there are base runners on first and second, with nobody out. The batter hits a pop up to second base, and the runners take off. The batter is out under the "infield fly rule." The runner on first is so excited he passes the runner who was on second; he is out for overtaking his teammate. Finally, the runner who was on second is hit by the ball when it drops into play, before he can return to second base, and is ruled out for interference. Three outs without a defensive player touching the ball.

Answer: A boxer

"Milling cove" was Georgian cant for a prizefighter. Bare-knuckle boxing was a brutal sport; fights lasted until one fighter was physically unable to stand. Despite the fact that prize fights were illegal, they remained highly popular.

Tom Molineaux was born a slave on a plantation in Virginia in 1784. After winning a fortune for his owner by winning fights against slaves from neighboring plantations, Molineaux was given his freedom, and made his way to England, where he announced his ambition to fight the English champion, Tom Cribb. After defeating several notable opponents, Molineaux finally met Cribb in the ring on December 3, 1810. Cribb did not take Molineaux seriously, and had not trained for the fight; he still managed to win a hard-fought and controversial decision over the former slave. The two men met again on September 28, 1811 and this time Cribb was ready. He beat Molineaux to a bloody pulp and broke his jaw before knocking him out. After his second loss to Cribb, Molineaux became an alcoholic and a shadow of his former self. He died, penniless, in Ireland in 1818. George MacDonald Fraser wrote a fictionalized biography of Molineaux called "Black Ajax."

Answer: Vivian Vance

On the very first day of rehearsal for "I Love Lucy," Frawley heard Vivian Vance, who played his character's wife, Ethel, say "I can't play his wife. No one will believe I'm married to that old ____." Frawley took offense at the remark, and it was all downhill from there.

Despite working together for nine seasons on "I Love Lucy," Frawley and Vance despised each other. Frawley died of a heart attack on March 3, 1966. Vance was at a restaurant with her husband when she heard the news of Frawley's death, and supposedly shouted, "Champagne for everybody!"

Answer: Celebrating Christmas

Puritans did not believe in celebrating Christmas; in 1659, Massachusetts passed a law making the celebration of Christmas illegal, and violators were subject to a fine of five shillings, a hefty sum in those days. Puritan opposition to the celebration of Christmas was rooted in the fact that it was not sanctioned by the Bible, and was actually derived from pagan celebrations of the winter solstice.

The Puritans were actually pretty heavy drinkers by modern standards. They did not object to writing poetry, and they did not forbid dancing, as long as it was not "lewd dancing." In many ways the Puritans were not all that puritanical. Research has shown that half or more of Puritan brides were pregnant at the time of their wedding. Adultery and fornication were frowned upon, but no special stigma seems to have been attached to couples who consummated their relationship prior to marriage.

Answer: Border collie

Almost three-quarters of fatal attacks on humans are caused by only two breeds: American pit bull terriers and Rottweilers. Most of the dead are children. Pit bull owners will tell you that they are actually sweet, gentle dogs who have to be trained to be vicious.

Many fatalities are among the loving owners of these "sweet, gentle dogs." The only dog I was surprised to see on the list was the Saint Bernard; they usually appear to be quite laid back. They are very large dogs, however, and if they do attack, they are quite capable of killing a human being. Border collies are very territorial, and will sometimes bite, but their attacks almost never result in death or serious injury to people.

Answer: No

A "periorbital hematoma" is medical jargon for a black eye. Most of us - well, most guys, anyway - get a few of them during our lifetime. The continued use of Latin terms for relatively common conditions seems to serve no purpose other than to confuse patients.

Answer: Heidelberg

Most German cities suffered major damage from air raids by the Allies during WWII; Heidelberg was one of the few cities that was not bombed. The reason why this happened is not clear; there is a persistent rumor that there was a tacit agreement that the Allies would not bomb Heidelberg, the site of Germany's oldest university, if the Germans did not bomb Oxford or Cambridge.

There seems to be no evidence to support this belief. The argument that Heidelberg did not contain any vital industrial or military installations also does not explain why it was spared.

Many German cities that were not strategically important were bombed mercilessly.