Play the Slate News Quiz
With Jeopardy! superchampion Ken Jennings.
Welcome back to Slate’s weekly news quiz. I’m your host, 74-time Jeopardy! winner Ken Jennings.
Every Friday I’ll be testing your knowledge with 12 challenging questions on the week’s news events, big and small, including happenings in science, sports, politics, and culture both high and low. The questions are multiple-choice, and time is of the essence: You have 30 seconds to answer, and as the seconds tick away, the question’s point value drops from 50 all the way down to zero, so you’ll want to click on your answer as fast as you possibly can. There’s no penalty for an incorrect answer, so feel free to take a guess if your puny human brain fails you.
At the end of the quiz, you’ll be able to compare your score with that of the average contestant, as well as to the score of a Slatester whom I’ve talked into taking the quiz on the record. This week’s contestant is Slate’s blogger for The Vault, Rebecca Onion.
Think you can ace my quiz and beat Onion? Good luck!
Last week's average score of 347 on the Slate News Quiz was the highest in the quiz's history, a jump of almost 100 points over the previous week. As you can imagine, I find this trend ... disturbing. Could I be getting soft? If your score last week made you a little cocky, let's see how you do on these 12 questions.
Question 1 of 12
When Jorge Bergoglio became Pope Francis, he chose the first entirely new papal name in 1,100 years. Which of these men—from a long time ago and a Vatican far, far away—was the last pope to break in a new name?
Lando, who was the pontiff for about a year during the 10th century, kept his own name when he became pope.
Question 2 of 12
A leading official told the Chinese parliament this week that the country needs to switch over from chopsticks to forks. Why?
China uses 20 million trees' worth of disposable chopsticks every year, warned forestry chairman Bo Guangxin.
Question 3 of 12
"This comprehensive series of tests will show us whether the proposed battery improvements will work as designed," said Cabinet member Ray LaHood on Tuesday, referring to what company's woes?
The tests on the 787's redesigned battery system may have the Dreamliner back in the air by May.
Question 4 of 12
At a brief but emotional news conference Monday, who said, "People are dying every day. This is not a joke"?
A New York supreme court judge had just invalidated Bloomberg's ban on sugary drinks larger than 16 ounces.
Question 5 of 12
On Tuesday, Google agreed to pay $7 million for privacy violations when it collected Wi-Fi data using its "Street View" camera cars. Based on last year's earnings, how long will it take Google to earn back that $7 million?
Google earnings passed $50 billion last year, meaning that the company makes almost $6 million an hour.
Question 6 of 12
Saudi Arabia is considering ending execution by beheading, not because of human rights concerns but for what unusual reason?
The kingdom is considering firing squads instead, since overworked swordsmen have been showing up late—or not at all—for executions.
Question 7 of 12
A whopping 99.8 percent of the population voted Monday to maintain the current political situation where?
1,513 Falklanders supported the referendum to remain a British overseas territory, with just three people voting against.
Question 8 of 12
Wrigley's announced on its website that in April it will debut a new gum with what unusual property?
Alert Energy Caffeine Gum, targeted at tired twentysomethings, will have "a bitter, medicinal taste" to deter children from chewing.
Question 9 of 12
Paul Ryan's budget plan, unveiled Monday, promises to do what by the year 2023?
Question 10 of 12
On Tuesday, 53-year-old Mitch Seavey became the oldest person ever to win what?
Question 11 of 12
Which of these 1953 events did one participant declare officially invalid on Monday?
As tensions rise on the peninsula, North Korea nullified the armistice in response to U.S. and South Korean joint military exercises.
Question 12 of 12
A British judge has banned York University student James White from owning a pet for eight years after he was convicted of doing what?
In his defense, White argued that (a) he was very drunk and (b) the hamster probably died of heart failure before it was tossed into the skillet.
You got 8 out of 12 answers correct in 20 minutes 30 seconds.
0
total
Pope Luke
Pope Han
Pope Lando
Pope Jar Jar
To speed up mealtimes
To save trees
To accommodate Westerners
To waste less food
Boeing
Dell
General Motors
Apple
Gabrielle Giffords, about gun control
Ban Ki-moon, about Syria
Rand Paul, about drone strikes
Michael Bloomberg, about soda
Just over a minute
Just over an hour
Just over a day
Just over a week
An increasing number of women on death row
A new interpretation of the Quran
A shortage of qualified swordsmen
Problems disposing of the heads
Venezuela
Catalonia
The Falklands
Zimbabwe
It's caffeinated
It's bacon-flavored
It glows in the dark
It conceals body odor
Balance the budget
Pay off the deficit
Phase out Obamacare
Complete the Atlas Shrugged film trilogy
The Purple Heart
The Iditarod
The National Book Award
The Biggest Loser
The coronation of Queen Elizabeth
Sir Edmund Hillary's ascent of Mount Everest
The execution of the Rosenbergs
The armistice ending the Korean War
Dressing his schnauzer as Hitler
Keeping his goldfish in bong water
Detonating a parakeet
Frying a hamster
Average
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You
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Rebecca Onion
Blogger for The Vault
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