Smart People Doing Dumb Things Quiz

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. In the early 20th century, Coca-Cola missed many chances to buy what now rival company?

Answer: Pepsi

Caleb Brabham established the company in 1902 and patented his recipe a year later. The company filed for bankruptcy on December 8, 1931, the first of a few opportunities for Coca-Cola to buy up their rival. Instead, Charles Gulth bought the brand, and used the candy company he owned to rebuild the taste of Pepsi.

2. The Leaning Tower of Pisa is an icon of Italy - and of architectural miscalculation. Was the building originally planned to be on a slant?

Answer: No

During the 177 years that it took to construct, the building started to slant, as the unstable soil underneath the structure could not support it evenly. The slant means that one of the two staircases that lead to the top floor has two fewer steps than the other. The tower leans at an angle of 3.99 degrees, it is horizontally displaced by 3.9 meters.

3. Faulty equipment caused water meant for cooling uranium to burst out of its container, creating one of the worst disasters in US history. Where did it happen?

Answer: Three Mile Island

The disaster killed nobody, despite the location of Three Mile Island, near Harrisburg, the capital of Pennsylvania. After it occurred in 1979, the mistake cost $836.9 million in repairs and cleanup. 40,000 gallons of nuclear waste was also dumped into the Susquehanna River in the disaster as well. Ironically, the film "The China Syndrome" had just been released, detailing, albeit fictionally, what would happen if there was a problem at a nuclear reactor.

4. Captain Joe Hazelwood made a huge mistake when he controlled the Exxon Valdez, which ran aground where on the Pacific coast?

Answer: Alaska

The ship was carrying over 53 million gallons of oil when it ran aground in Prince William Sound on March 24, 1989. The ship had just left the town of Valdez, heading for Long Beach, California. Up to 750,000 barrels of oil were released into the water, killing up to 250,000 birds, along with 3000 sea otters, 250 bald eagles, and 22 killer whales.

This mistake cost around $4.4 billion in clean-up to the Alaskan coastline.

5. Christopher Columbus set off across the Atlantic Ocean in search of India and China. But he made a mistake in his assumptions and calculations, and landed in what is now what country?

Answer: Bahamas

Columbus called those he met in the Caribbean "Indians", believing he had found the sea route to India. The local Tainos told Columbus of a large island to the south of them that Columbus interpreted as China or Japan. The island was really Cuba. He claimed the island where he first landed for Spain, and named it "San Salvador".

After travelling along the coast of Cuba in search of gold, it was clear he didn't find his intended destination, but began the colonization of the Americas.

6. Lieutenant Colonel George Custer made a very disastrous mistake when the hundreds of enemy forces he expected turned out to be thousands, at what battle?

Answer: Battle of Little Bighorn

Custer took the 7th Cavalry out to Montana, as tensions were rising between the Lakota Sioux and Cheyenne tribes, and the United States. Underestimating the number and spirit of the warriors, and the control of their leader Sitting Bull, Custer's troops were heavily outnumbered. All were killed, including Custer. The battle is known as "Custer's Last Stand".

7. The wife of this world leader tried to convince her husband to stay home one morning, after she had a terrible dream about his murder. Ignoring her, he went about his business, and was killed. Who is he?

Answer: Julius Caesar

Decimus Brutus entered, and laughed Caesar out of listening to his wife. Once on their way to the Senate house, they were approached by the group of 15 murderers. The plot was led by Marcus Junius Brutus, who Caesar said his last words "Et tu, Brute?". The murder was backed by many senators, who feared that Caesar would overthrow the senate and form a tyranny.

8. Alexander Fleming made a mistake, when he left a Petri dish open overnight. However, that mistake led to the discovery of what?

Answer: Penicillin

Fleming noted that the blue-green mould left on the dish was able to kill the bacteria around it. When the discovery was made in 1928, Fleming was experimenting with the influenza virus at St. Mary's Hospital in London. Penicillin was used during the Second World War, limiting the deaths and amputations of soldiers.

The use led to the mass production of the antibiotic, now the most commonly used one in the world.

9. The French greatly outnumbered their British counterparts at the Battle of Agincourt. But failing to acknowledge their opponents's tactics and strength, they were easily defeated. This battle was a part of what war?

Answer: Hundred Years' War

20,000 French soldiers were waiting for the 11,000 British solders in Agincourt, as they tried to return to France after laying siege to Normandy. The battle lasted only one day, October 25, 1415. The tired English archers surprised the French, with longbows that could project arrows 250 feet. French soldiers tried to attack the English, but were in trouble with their heavy armor, especially on a muddy battlefield. 6,000 French soldiers died, while the English casualties only reached 400.

10. Gustavus Adolphus truly made a "fatal error", when he decided not to don armor when entering battle, leading to his demise. He was king of what country when he died?

Answer: Sweden

He ascended to the throne at the age of 17 in and was a brilliant military leader, helping his side win the Battle of Breitenfeld in 1631. At the Battle of L�tzen in 1632, the King claimed "The Lord God is my Armour!" for his reasoning not to wear any armor. Leading a charge on horseback, the King disappeared during the battle, until his shot and stripped body was found an hour later.

The Swedish side ended up winning the battle.

Source: Author George95

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bloomsby before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

Where would we be today, if these ten mistakes or errors in history hadn't happened?

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