Xanthine, Amber and Citrine Trivia Quiz

Answer: Amber

Unlike most gems, amber is not a mineral. It is a fossilized tree resin, usually yellow to brown in color. It was originally called yellow amber to distinguish it from grey amber, now called ambergris, the substance obtained from sperm whales and formerly used extensively in the perfume industry.

'Forever Amber' tells the story of an ambitious orphan, Amber St Clare, who uses her yellow-eyed beauty to sleep her way to financial security in Restoration London. All the while, her heart belongs to Bruce Carlton, whom she nurses through plague and the Great Fire of 1666, but who refuses to marry her. Many have noted the similarities between this story and Margaret Mitchell's 'Gone with the Wind', written a decade earlier and set in the US Civil War.

Answer: Quartz

Pure quartz, also called rock crystal, is a clear crystalline compound, but it exists in many color variants, including rose quartz (pink), amethyst (purple), smoky quartz (grey), milky quartz (white) and citrine (yellow). The colors are formed by inclusions (bubbles of gas or liquid trapped in the crystal) or by variations in the crystal structure.

Citrine is considered a yellow form of quartz, but can be any shade from pale yellow to nearly brown. At times, the color described by the term has been a more greenish yellow than is currently the case. Its name comes from the Latin word 'citrina', meaning yellow, which originally referred to the fruit of the citron tree, one of the first citrus fruits known in the Mediterranean.

Answer: Cream

Between 1966 and 1968, Cream produced a string of hits, including 'Sunshine of Your Love' (1967) and 'White Room', which also appeared on their 1968 album 'Wheels of Fire'. 'Wheels of Fire' was the first double album to sell a million copies, and be certified a platinum seller - its sales actually topped 35 million!

As a color, cream is almost white, with a slight yellow tinge - the color of cream, you won't be surprised to hear. Cream is the portion of milk with a higher butterfat content, that tends to rise to the top of milk (unless it has been homogenized). The yellowish tinge comes from carotenoids (yellow-colored pigments) in the plants eaten by cows as they graze. The exact shade depends on their diet - cows which are grain-fed generally produce white cream.

Answer: Mojave nugget

The Mojave Desert is found in southern California, along with portions of Nevada, Arizona and Utah. It covers an area of nearly 125,000 square kilometers, or 50,000 square miles, and includes both mountainous regions and Death Valley, the lowest point in North America.

The Mojave nugget, also called the Stringer nugget because it was found near Randsburg in the Stringer district, was discovered in 1977 by Ty Paulsen. Randsburg (named after the South African gold mining region) has been a gold mining town since 1895, although it currently has under 100 residents. Tourism forms a significant part of the town's economy.

Answer: Jonquil

Narcissus jonquilla, also called the rush daffodil, gets its species name from the Spanish word for rushes, 'junquillo'. A common sight around the Mediterranean, jonquils have long rush-like leaves and yellow or white flowers which usually form in clusters of up to five flowers. Jonquil oil is a common perfume ingredient.

Answer: Barney Stinson

These are four of the five central characters of the show, the fifth being Marshall's girlfriend (and later wife), Lily Aldrin. Barney's proposed Lemon Law for Dating is a reference to American laws giving purchasers of goods, especially cars, the right to either get a replacement or have their money returned if the product turns out to be defective. Defective cars are commonly called lemons; although the source of this term is ambiguous, it had come into widespread use by the 1960s.

In Barney's proposed extension, it would be considered fair practice for anyone to call off a date within the first five minutes, if it became clear that it was not going to work. Only Barney would make such a snap decision - Robin argues that it takes much longer than that to be sure there is no hope, and he sets her up with an intentionally lousy date to illustrate his point.

Answer: Maize

In British English, the word corn can be used to refer to any cereal plant, especially wheat, so maize is preferred in international use as the name for this food plant. The plant Zea mays mays, which originated in Mesoamerica, was probably first domesticated in Mexico by the Olmec or Mayan people. Over time, maize hybrids have been developed which yield large, evenly-sized kernels, unlike the scrappy seed arrangement of the original. Different sub-species have different carbohydrate and water content in their kernels, making them suitable for different uses. You won't have much luck trying to make popcorn with the kernels you can obtain from a succulent sweet corn on the cob.

Answer: Mustard plaster

Mustard plasters are made by mixing ground mustard seeds with flour and water, then spreading the mixture on a cloth that is applied to the chest or back. Care must be taken to avoid placing the paste in direct contact with the skin, as it can produce burns and blistering.

The paste tends to infiltrate the protective cloth, so it should not be left in place for too long - thirty minutes is the recommended maximum. While this is a common treatment for colds and other respiratory ailments, the vapors can trigger coughing fits and asthma attacks in sensitive individuals. I think I'll use eucalyptus for my cold, and keep my mustard for the hot dogs.

Answer: Io

In order from the closest to the furthest from Jupiter, the Galilean moons (the ones first seen by Galileo around 1610 and subsequently named by Simon Marius, who discovered them at about the same time) are Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto. These names, chosen from lovers of the Greek god Zeus, were suggested to Marius by Johannes Kepler. Galileo refused to used them, instead referring to the moons by number.

In the 20th century, when more moons were discovered, Galileo's numbering system was abandoned, and the Greek names became more commonly used.

Answer: Oxygen

Since there are only two red spheres shown, they must represent the two oxygen atoms. The five grey carbons and four blue nitrogens form two linked rings, with the four hydrogens and two oxygens attached. The IUPAC systematic name for xanthine is 3,7-Dihydropurine-2,6-dione. Xanthine occurs naturally as part of the metabolic process that breaks down purine into its constituent parts. Coffee lovers would be most interested in xanthine as a source for the production of caffeine and other mild stimulants.

The name for xanthine comes from the Greek word 'xanthos', meaning yellow; in crystal form, it has a slight yellowish tinge.