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Were you paying attention
in 2004? Good, then you'll have no problem with
this quiz on some of the year's most memorable
scientific events. Click the links for a little
help, or scroll down for the answers.
1. What has spent the best
part of this year strapped to the outside of the
International Space Station?
a. US Air Force prototype
space-to-surface laser weapons.
b. A life-sized mannequin designed to test astronauts'
exposure to radiation.
c. The ashes of Laika, the first dog in orbit.
d. Spare space suits to save on wardrobe room.
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here for story
2. Kopi Luwak, the world's
rarest and most expensive coffee, owes its cachet
to which unorthodox extra?
a. A psychotropic fungus
that produces feelings of "god-like alertness".
b. A natural roasting in baskets lowered into
Purace, a Colombian volcano.
c. A trip through the digestive system of an Asian
palm civet.
d. A discriminating sorting process, in which
each bean is individually tested for optimum pH
value.
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here for story
3. Which of the ten Old Testament
plagues of Egypt made an unwelcome return to Africa
for the first time in 15 years?
a. Boils.
b. Frogs.
c. Locusts.
d. Flies.
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here for story
4. Researchers from which
organization announced that they had created the
first embryonic stem-cell line produced from a
cloned human embryo?
a. Seoul National University,
South Korea.
b. University of California, Davis.
c. The Raelians.
d. The US National Institutes of Health.
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here for story
5. In October, archaeologists
unveiled evidence of Flores man. What had they
discovered?
a. The remains of a Neanderthal,
unearthed in Italy, who showed signs of having
suffered from hay fever.
b. The secret mathematical equations of Juan Jos
Flores, an Ecuadorian general who was active in
his country's struggle for independence.
c. Skeletal remains of a dwarfed relative of humans
that may have lived in Indonesia as recently as
18,000 years ago.
d. Prehistoric cave etchings of flowers in southern
France, hailed as the earliest examples of French
Impressionism.
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here for story
6. Geneticists published
the genome sequence of the chicken, allowing them
to reveal what surprising discovery?
a. That a simple genetic
modification could double the size of the average
spicy chicken wing.
b. That chickens probably have a sense of smell.
c. That frogs' legs taste like chicken because
of the similarity of the two species' muscle proteins.
d. That the phrase 'chickening out' can be explained
easily by the numerous segments of DNA that code
for Fear factor, a hormone unique to birds.
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here for story
7. Scientists were alarmed
by what news from the University of Wales?
a. Latex lab gloves are
linked to reduced sexual performance.
b. A desktop quantum computer will only work provided
that its owner doesn't try to use it for anything.
c. Alcohol consumption is associated with degeneration
in neurons known to produce logical and original
ideas.
d. They could be replaced by a fully functional
'robot scientist' in the near future.
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here for story
8. Physicists revealed the
best way to guide terahertz waves, which are used
in medical and security imaging. What did they
use?
a. Plastic ribbons.
b. Concentric polymagnetic rings.
c. Nanotubes filled with water.
d. A bent coathanger.
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here for story
9. The SMART-1 probe has
just arrived at the Moon, using an innovative
ion-drive propulsion system. The force generated
by its engine is equivalent to:
a. An elephant hitting a
brick wall at 200 kilometres per hour.
b. Andy Roddick's tennis serve.
c. Two pennies resting on the palm of your hand.
d. A butterfly's wingbeat.
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here for story
10. Canadian zoologists revealed
that mammals at more frosty latitudes tend to
have larger what?
a. Heads.
b. Social groups.
c. Egos.
d. Penis bones.
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here for story
11. Traffic experts revealed
why Bogot's motorists suffer far fewer jams than
their counterparts in other big cities. What is
the Colombian capital's secret?
a. A law forcing drivers
to use hand signals for all manoeuvres.
b. Satellite imaging of the most congested areas.
c. A ban on in-car music.
d. A generally selfish, aggressive driving style.
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here for story
12. Washington DC welcomed
back which group after a 17-year absence?
a. The troop of cicadas
known as Brood X.
b. Antiglobalization demonstrators.
c. The Montreal Expos.
d. The Neocons.
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here for story
Answers
1b; 2c; 3c;
4a; 5c; 6b; 7d; 8d; 9c; 10d; 11d; 12a
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