The Astounding Science Puzzle Book E-Book

Matt Brown

• Herausgeber: Batsford
• Kategorie: Wissenschaft und neue Technologien
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2020

Seitenzahl: 103

Beschreibung

An engaging and witty puzzle book for science fans all over the world. The Astounding Science Puzzle Book features a series of mini quizzes of 10–15 questions on quirky topics, including 'Marvellous maths and peculiar patterns', 'Wonderful wordplay' and 'Wonders and fragilities of the body'. This handsome book makes exploring maths, physics, chemistry and biology exciting and challenging, and is perfect for any quiz lover. The trivia is based on science but also extends to popular culture, history and language – with Nobel Prize winners alongside Elvis Presley, and the moons of Mars alongside Jurassic Park. The book is interweaved with puzzles, including witty anagrams, logic puzzles, crosswords, dingbats and other illustrated puzzles. Aspiring code-breakers should keep their eyes peeled for hidden puzzles as well. From the Big Bang to Beatles lyrics – this book is perfect for any trivia lover.

Leseprobe

CONTENTS

Blast Off!

Wonderful Wordplay

Popular Culture

Adventures Through Time

Around the Earth and Into Space

An Incredible Journey Through the Life of a Scientist

Remarkable People of Science

Wonders and Fragilities of the Body

Marvellous Maths and Peculiar Patterns

All Creatures Great and Small

Answers

INTRODUCTION

Welcome to a book of puzzles like no other. It has crosswords, and quizzes and riddles as you’d expect, but all are inspired by the wonderful, irresistible, astounding world of science.

This book is for anyone with a curiosity about the world and the universe. You don’t need a background in science, or medicine or mathematics – a knack for lateral thinking will go a long way. I’ve designed most of the question rounds so that, even if you don’t know the answer, you’ll get a bit of an ‘Aha!’ moment when all is revealed.

Rather than dividing the book into well-scratched pigeonholes such as ‘chemistry’ and ‘astronomy’, or giving you 20 questions on atomic structure, I’ve laid out a tapas of perplexing mini-quizzes. Alongside traditional platters, you’ll find more quixotic fare on subjects you might not expect. Try the Beatles science quiz, for example, or peer-reviewed nursery rhymes or the anatomical treasure map. These are, I have to admit, a little whimsical, but such rounds also reflect how deeply science underpins human culture.

Above all, the book should be fun. It is rewarding to learn how the world around us works, even if that knowledge has no practical purpose. A good dose of trivia is its own reward. There are diamonds out there the size of planets. A quarter of our bones are in our feet. Half the cells in the human body aren’t human. This stuff won’t get you invited to parties or pay the bills or de-escalate international tensions, but it does help us appreciate our existence in a new light. If you see someone with a smile on their face and a twinkle in the eye it may be that they are in love; or perhaps they just heard a really good piece of trivia.

Over many years as a science writer and quizmaster, I’ve picked up a fair few gems (even if they’re not planetary). Some of the best are in this book, alongside a set of fiendish puzzles. I do hope you enjoy them. Now, let’s get facting.

We launch with a selection of more traditional science quizzes and puzzles, just to get you started.

1. IN THE BEGINNING...

1. What is the first element in the periodic table?

2. What name, describing the beginning of the Universe, was coined by an astronomer who never believed in it?

3. Röntgen, van’t Hoff, von Behring, 1901. What was this the beginning of?

4. Which scientific organization was created by the signature of President Eisenhower on 29 July 1958?

5. What formally launched in 1990 and was declared complete in 2003?

6. The world’s longest continuously running experiment looks at the drip rate in a sample of pitch. On average, the tar drips once every decade. In which decade was it set up?

2. DOMESTIC SCIENCE

1. KITCHEN: Which James Bond villain might covet the substance with European additive code E175?

2. BEDROOM: This molecule may be among the first you consume in a morning. What is it?

3. LOUNGE: What does the LCD in your LCD television stand for?

4. UNDER THE STAIRS: Number of eyes on most spiders, multiplied by number of legs

5. GARAGE: In which decade was the first electric car tested?

(a) 1890s

(b) 1930s

(c) 1990s

(d) 1830s

6. BATHROOM: Why is titanium dioxide commonly added to toothpaste?

7. TOILET: Which English inventor, with an apt name, is often credited with inventing the flush toilet, although he only made improvements?

8. ATTIC: Which building material, once commonly used for insulation, gets its name from the Greek word for unquenchable?

3. BY ANOTHER NAME

1. Which element is also known as wolfram?

2. Einstein-Rosen bridges are a common staple of science fiction, but they usually go by a simpler name. What are they?

3. Which science fiction author has written under the pen names John Lange, Michael Douglas and Jeffrey Hudson?

4. Which astronomer was known as the Queen of 19th-Century Science and is immortalized in the name of a college of the University of Oxford?

5. What is the common name of the constellation Ursa Major, and what are the alternative North American and UK names for its seven brightest stars?

6. What is another common name for the uterus?

7. Maria Salomea Skłodowska is better known as whom?

8. Why might fans of the history of science grow a Flower of Kent in their gardens?

4. WONDEROUS VARIETIES

Match the item on the left to the list of varieties it comes in, on the right.

Item

Variety

Relativity

strange, charm, top, bottom, up, down

Star types

s, p, d, f

Quark

O, B, A, F, G, K, M

Atomic orbitals

elliptical, spiral, irregular

Fundamental interactions

alpha, beta, gamma

Galaxy types

special, general

Nuclear radiation

strong, electromagnetic, weak, gravitational

5. FAMOUS FIRSTS

1. In 1950, Able was the first of its kind to be given a name. Who or what was Able?

2. Experimental physicist Chien-Shiung Wu was the first living scientist to receive what distinction in 1990?

3. What invention, now ubiquitous, was first unveiled outside the UK’s Houses of Parliament on 9 December 1868?

4. Little Boy and Fat Man were the first what?

5. Louise Brown hit the headlines in 1978 as the world’s first what?

6. What is astronaut Buzz Aldrin’s real first name?

7. Which everyday object was first conceived in 1945 after a researcher playing with a vacuum tube noticed that a candy bar in his pocket had melted?

8. Which remarkable lady was not only the first woman in England to qualify as a physician and surgeon, but also the first female magistrate and first female mayor?

6. THE SCIENCE OF ALCOHOL

1. We think of alcohol as an intoxicating drink, but the name describes a much wider class of chemical compound. By definition, these compounds must contain an alcohol ‘group’. It comprises which two elements bonded together?

2. Which type of alcohol is most abundant in alcoholic drinks?

3. From what language is the word ‘alcohol’ derived?

4. Who or what consumed one third of the alcohol produced in Germany in 1944-45?

5. What do the letters ABV, found on the side of bottles containing alcohol, stand for?

6. Which alcoholic beverage was the first to be consumed on the moon?

7. In 2009, Stephen Hawking threw a cocktail party and nobody turned up. Who did he invite?

7. A QUICK CROSSWORD

ACROSS

1. Fossilised tree resin

4. Segment of a circle

6. Greek letter used to represent a wave function. Alternatively, a measure of pressure.

7. Mammal with a prehensile nose

8. Plant cultivated for its colourful taproot

9. Double –– experiment; a famous demonstration of how light can behave both as a particle and a wave

12. Type of carbohydrate

14 Fundamental state of matter

16. Coenzyme found in all living cells. Alternatively, abbreviation for a trashy band with a mildly scientific name

17. Nerve that sends signals from the retina to the brain

DOWN

1. Unit of current

2. Solution of sodium chloride

3. Quality of a chemical reaction that is increased by an enzyme

4. Alternative reading of 1 down, with two bonus phosphates

5. Specialist unit of mass equal to 200mg

8. Force-carrying particles, for example

10. Simpler term for electromagnetic radiation

11. “Cogito, ­— sum”; proposition by René Descartes

13.The —­ Delusion; controversial book by Richard Dawkins

15. Anatomical enclosure

8. AND ALSO...

1. Which subatomic particle has the same name as a character from Star Trek, and a soft cheese?

2. Which 1991 song by Nirvana is also a soft alkali metal?

3. Grace Hopper was a US computer pioneer who laid the groundwork for the development of COBOL. She also had a glittering military career. What naval rank did she achieve?

4. What is the only planet in our solar system that precisely shares its name with a chemical element?

5. Which spacecraft has the same name as a large bird and a pub associated with DNA?

6. Which signatory of the US Declaration of Independence also invented bifocal glasses and described the Gulf Stream?

7. Lonnie Johnson served as a senior engineer on the Galileo space probe mission to Jupiter. He is also a multi-millionaire, thanks to inventing which popular toy?

9. WHIZ, POP, BANG!

1. What might do this, with lots of noise and light?6 KNO3 + C7H4O + 2 S K2CO3 + K2SO4 + K2S + 4 CO2 + 2 CO + 2 H2O + 3 N2

2. Supernovae are exploding stars. They can be impressive. A supernova in 1006 CE was around 16 times brighter than Venus and visible during daytime. They’re also rare in our galaxy. In what century was the last supernova to have been unquestionably visible to the naked eye?

3. What does TNT stand for?

(a) trinitrotoluene

(b) tetranitrile trioxide

(c) Trevithick’s nitrothermicite

(d) totally noisy thwackbaggler

4. Place the following in order of typical internal pressure, lowest first: champagne bottle, inflatable space station module, soda bottle, car tyre

5. Who might have the explosive silver fulminate lying about the house?

6. What is thought to have been the loudest bang on Earth in recorded history?

7. The Big Bang theory is the prevalent model of how the Universe began. How many billion years ago did it occur or – in other words – how old is the Universe? Consider yourself correct if you get it to the nearest billion.

10. A LIGHT QUIZ

1. Light can be considered as either a wave or a stream of particles. What name is given to a particle of light?

2. Which of the following is not a major source of light?

(a) laser

(b) maser

(c) taser

(d) quasar

3. Nothing can travel faster than light. But that’s only in a vacuum. Using exotic materials, it is possible to slow light down to a crawl. To the nearest metre-per-second, what’s the slowest speed that light has been retarded to?

4. The Savoy hotel and theatre in London are famous throughout the world for elegance and class. But why does the theatre hold a special place in the history of light?

5. Which well-known scientist carried out the first experiments into powering lighthouses with electricity?

6. If the Sun suddenly disappeared, how many minutes would it take before the Earth was plunged into darkness?

11. ELEMENTARY CRYPTIC PUZZLE

All of the answers are familiar chemical elements.

1. Groan when beaten up

2. Superman’s bane lacks part of its bite

3. Canine restraint is often slated

4. Daft deceit, we hear

5. Inverted underwear in a ruse

6. Final letter incorporated

7. Pirate, horse and lining

8. Shuffling this metal is amusing me

9. Double dose gives Belgian boy

10. Nobody mixes up this one

11. Innermost messenger

12. The place to dig out siblings?

13. Don’t steal back

14. Speaks the language of Japanese comic?

15. 1984 gold 1,500m winner is chased by 2016 gold 100m winner, we hear

12. THROUGH THE RAINBOW

1. RED: Nuclear physicist Peter Buck donated one of the world’s most impressive red rubies to the National Museum of Natural History in Washington DC. He didn’t make his money from his physics, but from co-founding which international food chain?

2. ORANGE: In which war did the US make extensive (and frankly appalling) use of Agent Orange, a herbicidal warfare agent?

3. YELLOW: Which organ produces bile, the yellow fluid that aids digestion?

4. GREEN: Which element is most commonly used to give fireworks a green colour?

5. BLUE: Blue whales dine almost exclusively on what?

6. INDIGO: With what sport would you associate Deep Blue?

7. VIOLET: Which chemical element gets its name from the Greek word for violet?

13. THE END OF EVERYTHING

1. The dodo is the sorry poster-bird of extinction. It was wiped out by humans in the mid-17th century. But to which island was it indigenous?

2. What is the last letter of the Greek alphabet, and also the symbol for the standard unit of electrical resistance?

3. What ends at the heliopause (at least by one definition)?

4. What name is given to the group of elements, usually gaseous, that make up the far-right end of the periodic table?

5. Which science fiction movie ends with a half-naked man cursing the human race in front of a battered Statue of Liberty?

6.