Time for Teasers Trivia Quiz

Answer: Monday

We normally think of a leap year as having dates that skip a day over the corresponding date the previous year. However, this only happens after the 29th of February and actually has that impact until the end of February in the year after a leap year. So the 1st of January in a leap year will be one day of the week after the 1st of January in the previous year.

Answer: 5 years

Because the effect of a leap year can cause a day of the week for a particular date to be skipped, a day of the week for a date can come around again more quickly.

If two leap years occur in a period of seven years, two days will be skipped and a day of the week could occur for the same date five years later.

Answer: The first day of each pair starts on the same day of the week

Whatever day of the week April starts on, July also starts on. So if April started on a Tuesday, July will also start on a Tuesday. Whatever day of the week September starts on, December also starts on. So if September started on a Friday, December would start on a Friday.

Each pair has a 31 day month and a 30 day month between them. May and June, and October and November.

Answer: Arizona and Hawaii

Arizona and Hawaii are the only two US states that don't observe Daylight Savings Time. On the day the clocks go back, it creates an extra hour on that day, so it has 25 hours. You could even say that it is the longest day of the year.

As Arizona and Hawaii don't turn back the clocks, their days remain at 24 hours.

Answer: Last Sunday in October

The practice of moving the clocks forward in spring began with Germany in World War I and spread across Europe. It has come and gone as a practice in various European countries since then. In the 1970s, during the oil crisis it was brought back to save energy, and has mostly stayed in place since then.

Twice a year the topic gets heightened attention, in spring and autumn when the change takes place. The European Union proposed abolishing the custom in 2018, but it did not happen after hitting opposition from some EU countries. At the time of writing, in 2025, the changes still occur.

Answer: 11

Because the effect of a leap year can cause a day of the week of a date to be skipped, a date will not occur on a particular day again for 11 years at most. For the 29th of February, it actually takes 28 years to reoccur on the same day. For example, during the 20th century it was only on a Monday in 1904, 1932, 1960 and 1988.

Answer: 23 hours, 56 minutes and 4 seconds

A day, as we normally think of it, is the time it takes for the Sun to return to the same spot in the sky, which is 24 hours. It is known as a Solar Day. A Sidereal Day is the time it takes for Earth to fully rotate once relative to stars, which is 23 hours, 56 minutes and 4 seconds.

As Earth rotates on its axis, it's also moving along on its solar orbit. So that extra bit of rotation is required, about 1 degree per day, for the Sun to make it back to the same spot in the sky 24 hours later. That accounts for the extra 3 minutes and 56 seconds.

Answer: It is the only one listed that has a half hour time differential to UTC

Iran is 3 hours and 30 minutes after Coordinated Universal Time. Sweden is one hour after it. Uruguay is three hours behind it. Rwanda is two hours ahead of it.

While most countries use one hour differentials, there are some with 30 minute and 45 minute differentials. Nepal is one with a 45 minute differential, being UTC +5:45.

Answer: Monday

Any month that has a Friday the 13th, starts on a Sunday, so Monday will be the 2nd.

One way of working this out quickly is to add three days to Friday to get to the 16th, which is a Monday, so the 2nd will be fourteen days earlier, also on a Monday.

Answer: 1582

The Julian calendar was introduced by Julius Caesar in 46 BC. The Gregorian calendar was introduced by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582. It was done due to inaccuracies in the Julian calendar that caused it to drift relative to the solar year.

A rough conversion has the Gregorian Calendar at 13 days ahead of the Julian Calendar. Without the changeover the 14th of September 2025 in the Gregorian Calendar would be the equivalent to the 1st of September 2025 in the Julian Calendar.