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 Slate-ster whom I’ve talked into taking the quiz on the record. This week’s contestant is Slate’s executive editor, Josh Levin, who is also the host of Slate’s sports podcast, Hang Up and Listen.
Think you can ace my quiz and beat Levin? Good luck!
If your NCAA bracket is already busted, try playing the Slate News Quiz for a fresh start. I wish I were a Warren Buffett type who could offer a $1 billion prize for a perfect score of 600 on this week's quiz. Unfortunately, Jeopardy! doesn't pay as well as Berkshire Hathaway, so you're playing only for the thrill of defeating Slate staffers, total strangers, and any of your dumber friends to whom you recommend the quiz.
Question 1 of 12
Abdul-Fattah el-Sisi announced Wednesday that he will be resigning from the army to run for president of what country?
He's been Egypt's de facto leader since leading the takeover of Mohamed Morsi's government last July.
Question 2 of 12
On Monday, how did some Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 family members first learn that the plane was officially considered "lost"?
After the condolence text was widely criticized, Malaysia Airlines assured the media that it also contacted as many family members as possible in person.
Question 3 of 12
Five former aides of what man were found guilty on 31 counts of fraud and conspiracy in federal court this week?
Question 4 of 12
A new Fox reality series will trick 12 American women into thinking they might actually get what?
Unbeknownst to them, "Harry" is just a look-alike named Matthew Hicks.
Question 5 of 12
The coalition of nations called the G-8 suspended operations this week, for what reason?
Russia was effectively ejected from the (former) Group of Eight, which will meet this June in Brussels instead of Sochi as originally planned.
Question 6 of 12
A math teacher in Belgium quieted a classroom of noisy students by threatening them with what?
"I've read all the books," he told them, according to Belgian newspaper Het Nieuwsblad. "If there is too much noise again, I will write the names of the dead on the board."
Question 7 of 12
Katie Francis of Oklahoma City has set a new record by doing what 18,107 times over the past seven weeks?
Her goal is to hit 20,000 boxes by the end of the month.
Question 8 of 12
For the first time, Americans have been asked to vote online for the new Z-2 design of what?
There are three possible designs for the prototype Z-2 spacesuit, including a glowing Tron-inspired look called "Technology."
Question 9 of 12
On Saturday outside Oso, Wash., at least 24 people were killed in what kind of disaster, one of the deadliest of its kind in U.S. history?
Reports dating back to the 1950s had warned of potential "catastrophic failure" in the area.
Question 10 of 12
As part of Russia's takeover of Crimea, the Russian navy has seized what unusual Ukrainian military facility?
The elite sonar-proof dolphins, trained to patrol the Black Sea, locate mines, and attack scuba divers, have been in Ukrainian hands since the breakup of the USSR.
Question 11 of 12
This week the African nation of Guinea banned the eating of what unusual food?
At least 62 are dead from a new outbreak of the virus in West Africa.
Question 12 of 12
A National Transportation Safety Board investigator has blamed Monday's train derailment at O'Hare International Airport on what?
This is the second incident in two months caused by the same operator dozing off at the controls, the investigator said.
Egypt
Pakistan
Turkey
Lebanon
On CNN
In a text message from the airline
With a compensation check in the mail
When their Malaysian visas were revoked
Steve Jobs
Osama Bin Laden
Bernie Madoff
Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell
The CEO job at Pinterest
The cover of Vogue magazine
A chance to marry Prince Harry
A birth control mandate from the U.S. Supreme Court
To protest U.S. surveillance overseas
The EU refuses to fund its summit
Disagreement over exchange rates
To immediately reform as the G-7
Haircuts
His Christopher Walken impression
Game of Thrones spoilers
A chocolate gun
Selling a box of Girl Scout cookies
Sneezing
Sending a text message
Planting a tree
Commemorative quarters
Air Force One
Tax forms
NASA spacesuits
A helicopter crash
A coal mine explosion
A hailstorm
A mudslide
A unit of combat dolphins
The world's largest stockpile of salt
30 decommissioned Soviet spaceships
An experimental stink-bomb lab
Sassafras, used as a hallucinogen there
Bats, which can carry Ebola
Ketchup-flavored snacks, a "tool of Western imperialism"
Mummy linen, believed to improve potency
Heavy rains
A sleeping driver
Loose tracks
"Conscious uncoupling"
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