Answers
- 12 – since x% of y = y% of x, the calculation is much easier if one converts the question to 75% of 16. The commutative principle in maths – when adding, or multiplying two numbers, any order will give the same answer. In the case above, 1/100 x 16 x 75 = 1/100 x 75 x 16.)
- The US Open – which has been played on 52 different golf courses across the US. The 2024 Open is being played at Pinehurst in North Carolina.
- False – they are generally recognised to have originated in the Black Forest region of Germany in the middle of the 18th century.
- A British informal idiom for someone who talks a lot about doing something, but then fails to actually do it.
- Iceland has approved the killing of 99 fin whales during a hunting season that will extend to September. Japan, Norway, and Iceland have continued whaling in disregard of the international ban agreed in 1982.
- b) – China which produces more than the next six largest countries combined.
- One of two things – the ring on a dog’s collar to which one attaches the dog’s lead, or the two metal rings on a horse’s harness through which the reins are passed.
- c) – Steve Biko, South African leader of the Black Consciousness Movement who died in prison at the hands of South African security officers.
- The results from the elections to the European Parliament where, like Germany, significant gains by right-wing parties were achieved. Most observers are surprised, as opinion polls suggest Macron’s party has every chance of losing. But insiders say there is an urgent need to clarify a messy political landscape by presenting voters with a stark choice between their centrist camp and the right-wing populists.
- 10.The idea that wisdom can depend on context – people tend to be wiser when reasoning about other people’s problems rather than their own. Named after the biblical king who struggled to apply his famously sage judgement to his own personal life.
- 11.Blue, Yellow, Black, Green, Red.
- 12.The New York Times (NYT) – known for its publication of current bestselling books. A recent survey by The Economist suggests that the NYT’s published lists are politically biased. Books from publishers with a conservative leaning often do not make the lists despite having equivalent (or greater sales) than books by left-wing writers which are featured. NYT denied the claim, while its methodology for rankings is an internal secret.
- 13.A spiked helmet, most associated with Prussian and Imperial German forces from the mid 19th century until after World War I. It is still used as part of parade/ceremonial events within various armies around the world.
- 14.The Cure
- 15.False – a Saturn year is much longer, 29 years in fact. Interestingly, a Saturn day is only 10 hours and 14 minutes in length since it spins very fast on its axis.
- 16.Helios the sun god – it was built between 292 and 280 BCE and stood about 30 metres tall, almost the height of the Statue of Liberty. It was destroyed by an earthquake in 226 BCE.
- 17.Françoise Hardy – one of the most influential figures in French music of all time. Hardy rose to prominence in the early 1960s and soon became an international sensation. Bob Dylan and David Bowie were amongst her most ardent admirers. She died after a long illness on Tuesday.
- 18.The Dutch – the Portuguese might dispute this as their missionaries in the region were probably the first Europeans to drink tea, even sending samples back to Portugal. But the Dutch were the first to ship large consignments to Holland. From there it spread to the rest of Europe.
- 19.12 – Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay, Venezuela. French Guiana is a part of France and is not a sovereign state.
- 20.Formic acid – also found in many insects especially ants.
