A heated debate raged in the pages of Nature magazine this month, as physicists tackled a pressing question: If you were to fall into a black hole, what would the cause of death be? Would you be stretched and squished via the process charmingly called "spaghettification," as has long been believed, or would you burst into flame as you crossed the event horizon? Luckily, that will not be one of the questions on this week's quiz, which hopefully you can escape without being crushed by gravity or burnt to a crisp.

Question 1 of 12

The U.S. Navy announced plans this week to deploy to the Persian Gulf a new system that, for the first time, can shoot down drones how?

Question 2 of 12

The Senate confirmed Sally Jewell, formerly the CEO of REI, as what on Wednesday?

Question 3 of 12

Activists in Germany have announced plans to occupy the 26,000-square-foot life-sized replica of what that is currently being built in Berlin's Alexanderplatz square?

"The Barbie Dreamhouse is the expression of a conventional role model that isn't OK," say organizers, who call the project sexist.

Question 4 of 12

Thanks to a Facebook campaign following Margaret Thatcher's death, what song entered the top 10 of the U.K. pop charts on Wednesday?

Question 5 of 12

Fill in the blanks. On Wednesday, _____ jointly announced an agreement to finally settle the longstanding and contentious issue of _____.

Question 6 of 12

Anne Smedinghoff, the first U.S. diplomat to die in the line of duty since the 2012 Benghazi attack, was killed last Friday while doing what?

Killed in a bomb attack, the 25-year-old foreign service officer volunteered last summer for the Kabul assignment after serving a tour in Venezuela straight out of college.

Question 7 of 12

In accordance with a Chilean court order, what happened to 1971 Nobel literature laureate Pablo Neruda this week?

Two members of Neruda's staff have speculated that he was poisoned by the Pinochet regime, and investigators aim to determine if he was murdered.

Question 8 of 12

On Friday, KFC announced a surprising brand reversal in which they will focus, for the first time, on buckets of chicken that don't contain any what?

The chain is calling the April rollout of its new "Original Recipe Boneless" flagship product its "biggest product introduction ... in modern times."

Question 9 of 12

Looming thunderstorms this week threatened recovery efforts following what disaster that struck Mayflower, Ark. on March 29?

According to a class-action lawsuit filed this week by residents, the rupture in the Exxon Mobil Pegasus pipeline has spilled more than 19,000 barrels of oil into their subdivision and surrounding wetlands.

Question 10 of 12

Target apologized last week for an "unintentional oversight," in which it carried a kimono-style dress in "Dark Heather Gray," but used what name for the plus-size dress of the same color?

Question 11 of 12

The appropriately named Sam Mullet was denied release from prison this week. Mullet led an unusual crime spree in 2011 by doing what?

Question 12 of 12

Many observers have linked North Korea's saber-rattling this week to their most important annual holiday, coming up on April 15. What is that holiday?

You got 8 out of 12 answers correct in 20 minutes 30 seconds.