The Thursday Quiz!
The Thursday Quiz is an "Is It or Isn't It" game. From the list of twelve items, your job is to determine whether each IS or ISN'T a true example of the week's category.
Remember always the Basis of Unity:
National Divorces
Where once was the Austro-Hungarian Empire is now, among other countries, Austria and Hungary. Where once was a country called "Korea," now there is North Korea and South Korea. There have been many national divorces throughout history; which of the following are actual examples, and which happened purely in michael5000's twisted imagination?
1. 1889 – Divided by the nearly impassible Andes from the political center in Buenos Aires, the west coast of Argentina declares independence and becomes the modern country of Chile.
2. 1903 – The northwestern part of Colombia that sticks up into Central America calves off and becomes Panama.
3. 1943 – While the colonial powers are embroiled in World War II, the remote British territory of Turkmenistan revolts and splits into modern Afghanistan and Uzbekistan; the Uzbeks are absorbed into the Soviet Union in 1946, but regain their independence with the end of the USSR in 1992.
4. 1960 – Seventeen months after its creation, and two months to the day after it gains independence from France, the Mali Federation fractures into Senegal and the Mali we know and love today.
5. 1961 – The United Arab Republic, after a three-year run, splits back into Syria and Egypt.
6. 1968 – The former Portuguese colony of Luanda splits into modern Angola and Namibia in the course of a violent civil war.
7. 1971 – Pakistan, the two halves of which have been on opposite sides of India from each other, divides in half. The western half gets to keep the name; the eastern half becomes Bangladesh.
8. 1973 – Lesotho, a non-contiguous province of Tanzania completely surrounded by South African territory, declares independence.
9. 1989 – Senegambia, which has been a federation for less than a decade, pitches it in; Senegal and Gambia reassert their full sovereignty.
10. 1991 – After a long civil war, Eritrea declares itself independent of Ethiopia.
11. 1997 – After three years of existence, the country of Bosnia & Herzegovina splits into the two countries of Bosnia and Macedonia.
12. 2006 – Montenegro declares itself independent of Serbia
The Thursday Quiz is an "Is It or Isn't It" game. From the list of twelve items, your job is to determine whether each IS or ISN'T a true example of the week's category.
Remember always the Basis of Unity:
No research, Googling, Wikiing, or use of reference books. The ThursdayThis Week's Category will spur a flurry of new flag design!
Quiz is a POP quiz. Violators will have to make it on their own.
National Divorces
Where once was the Austro-Hungarian Empire is now, among other countries, Austria and Hungary. Where once was a country called "Korea," now there is North Korea and South Korea. There have been many national divorces throughout history; which of the following are actual examples, and which happened purely in michael5000's twisted imagination?
1. 1889 – Divided by the nearly impassible Andes from the political center in Buenos Aires, the west coast of Argentina declares independence and becomes the modern country of Chile.
2. 1903 – The northwestern part of Colombia that sticks up into Central America calves off and becomes Panama.
3. 1943 – While the colonial powers are embroiled in World War II, the remote British territory of Turkmenistan revolts and splits into modern Afghanistan and Uzbekistan; the Uzbeks are absorbed into the Soviet Union in 1946, but regain their independence with the end of the USSR in 1992.
4. 1960 – Seventeen months after its creation, and two months to the day after it gains independence from France, the Mali Federation fractures into Senegal and the Mali we know and love today.
5. 1961 – The United Arab Republic, after a three-year run, splits back into Syria and Egypt.
6. 1968 – The former Portuguese colony of Luanda splits into modern Angola and Namibia in the course of a violent civil war.
7. 1971 – Pakistan, the two halves of which have been on opposite sides of India from each other, divides in half. The western half gets to keep the name; the eastern half becomes Bangladesh.
8. 1973 – Lesotho, a non-contiguous province of Tanzania completely surrounded by South African territory, declares independence.
9. 1989 – Senegambia, which has been a federation for less than a decade, pitches it in; Senegal and Gambia reassert their full sovereignty.
10. 1991 – After a long civil war, Eritrea declares itself independent of Ethiopia.
11. 1997 – After three years of existence, the country of Bosnia & Herzegovina splits into the two countries of Bosnia and Macedonia.
12. 2006 – Montenegro declares itself independent of Serbia
Express your nationalist aspirations by submitting your answers in the comments.
Oh, golly - I'm actually first! I will memorialize this historic event with a series of complete guesses because I have no idea what the hell I'm talking about re: geopolitical issues.
ReplyDeleteOr a great many other things, for that matter.
1. Not true.
2. Not false.
3. Not false.
4. Not true.
5. Not true.
6. Not false.
7. Not false.
8. Not true.
9. Not true.
10. Not false.
11. Not false.
12. Not true.
* in the spirit of the quiz, I tried to answer in as divisive a way as possible
1. 1889 - False. I'm pretty sure Chile achieved independence much earlier, and not FROM Argentina
ReplyDelete2. 1903 – True. Thanks to Teddy Roosevelt.
3. 1943 – False. That territory was already under Russian/Soviet control.
4. 1960 – I'll say true... but really, does anyone care?
5. 1961 – True... although you may be playing games with the date which is uncool.
6. 1968 – False. Angola was a Portuguese colonly, but Namibia was a former League of Nations mandate from Germany, that was administered by South Africa.
7. 1971 – True, thanks to their revolutionary leader, George Harrison.
8. 1973 – False. Never part of Tanzania. Probably independent much earlier...
9. 1989 – False. True Senegambians would be embarassed by your gaff.
10. 1991 – True.
11. 1997 – False. Bosnia and Macedonia were never part of the same province
12. 2006 – True. First the breakup of Yugoslavia, then the loss of Montenegro, this month the loss of Kosovo. By this time next year, Serbia will be the size of Rhode Island...
1. yes
ReplyDelete2. no…
3. no…
4. sure, why not?
5. uh, no.
6. sure, those african countries are always embroiled in civil war.
7. yes. this much i know is true.
8. sure, why not?
9. eh, no.
10. uh, no?
11. no?
12. ooo. i just heard about this i think. i think it's true. i wish my brain wasn't so swiss cheesey.
I dig this one, but will probably once again get only about half of them right.
ReplyDelete1. Isn't (I think)
2. Is! I believe the U.S. had a role on this back when they thought Panama would be a good place to build a canal.
3. Isn't (I think)
4. Isn't. I recall that Senegambia split to form Senegal and Gambia, but I have not heard of a Senegal/Mali split. If it did happen, I think it would have been a Senegambia/Mali split.
5. Isn't. Really don't know though.
6. Isn't. I think I remember that Namibia is one of Germany's few former African colonies.
7. Is. I didn't realize it was that recent though.
8. Is (I hope).
9. Is.
10. Is. I once worked with a fellow who fought for Eritrean independence.
11. Isn't. Bosnia & Herzogovina are still a unit, and Macedonia is a different former Yugoslav republic.
12. Oh, crap I remember hearing that this might happen, but I don't think it has. I'll say ISN'T.
Tough one--most of these sound at least possible.
ReplyDelete1. f
2. t
3. t
4. t
5. t
6. f
7. t
8. t
9. f
10. t
11. t
12. t
When I read the description of the quiz, I said a short prayer: "Dear Heavenly Mapmaker, let there be no questions about Africa or that ex-Yugoslavia area." Nobody was home.
ReplyDelete1 - false
2 - false
3 - false
4 - false
5 - true
6 - true
7 - true
8 - true
9 - false
10 - true (their high point; low point was joining W's "coalition")
11 - true
12 - false
1. Nope.
ReplyDelete2. Yep
3. Nope
4. Yep
5. Nope
6. Nope
7. Yep. I've always wondered who thought that the old configuration could possibly work. It must be that vaunted British sense of humour.
8. Nope
9. Yep.
10. Yep.
11. Nope
12. Yep.
1.No
ReplyDelete2.Yes
3.No
4.Yes
5.No
6.No
7.Yes
8.No
9.No
10.No
11.Yes
12.Yes
It's becoming clear to me that all these years in Mom's basement haven't been as well spent as they could have been.
Well Germany got divorced, but then they got back together. Kosovo just got a divorce, but Russia's not taking it too well.
ReplyDelete1. No – definitely older
ReplyDelete2. Yes –you want us to think of US Canal Zone and say no, didn’t you? Nice try.
3. No – but we appreciate that you had the beautiful Turkmenistan flag in a Monday quiz last month
4. Yes – home of Ali Farka Toure, not only a tres cool guitar player, but my favorite name to say out loud.
5. Yes – strange but true, since they are not contiguous (I also like to say contiguous as often as possible).
6. No
7. Yes. Concert for Bangladesh 1971. Long live Harry Georgeson.
8. Yes
9. No
10. Yes
11. No – again with Macedonia. The Lithuanians are feeling neglected.
12. Yes – newest recognized country in the world, until this week.
@karma - cracked me up. I'm not the prayin' sort, but if there's a heavenly mapmaker, I may have to reconsider.
ReplyDeleteNote to self: spend time on African geography.
@phineas - I didn't remember Harry Georgeson. I recommend googling it and clicking the first hit for some amusing album covers (not Bangladesh).
ReplyDelete1. Twisted Imagination
ReplyDelete2. Happened.
3. Twisted
4. Twisted?
5. Happened?
6. Twisted?
7. Happened
8. Happened?
9. Sounds twisted... Happened.
10. Twisted
11. Twisted
12. Happened?
Your twisted imagination would make the toughest of tests. SAT should hire you.
1. nein
ReplyDelete2. ja
3. nein
4. ja
5. ja- kinda, didnt egypt retain the name for a while?
6. nein
7. ja
8. nein
9. nein
10. ja
11. nein
12. ja
@karma - pseudonym for George Harrison. I remember being 12-13, borrowing All Things Must Pass from a neighbor, and listening to it a million times, even though it was a three-LP set.
ReplyDeleteYes, I actally made it in time.
ReplyDelete1 n
2 y
3 n
4 y
5 y
6 n
7 y
8 y
9 n
10 y
11 n
12 y
That seems like a lot of yes's. I think I may have been tricked by much of your fanciful Africa tales MMMMMM. But at least I got my entry in time...
must take quiz. . . must display ignorance. . .
ReplyDelete1 yes
2 no
3 no
4 yes
5 no
6 yes
7 no
8 yes
9 no
10 yes
11 yes
12 yes
1. no
ReplyDelete2. yes
3. yes
4. no--if I get this wrong, shoot me
5. no
6. no
7. yes
8. no
9. no--see #4
10.yes
11.no
12.yes
OK, times up. Apparently a pretty difficult quiz this week, more difficult than I intended it to be, which just goes to show that spending a dozen years of your life studying geography can actually teach you something. I don't necessarily recommend it, though.
ReplyDelete1. Chile and Argentina: NO
2. Panama and Colombia: YES and, as some of you mentioned, with not a little push from the United States.
3. Afghanistan and Uzbekistan: NO
4. The Mali Federation: YES INDEED
5. United Arab Republic: YES -- creating an acronym that crossword puzzle solvers are all too familiar with.
6. Luanda: NO. Luanda is the capital city of Angola, though.
7. Pakistan: YES, strangely enough.
8. Lesotho: NO WAY.
9. Senegambia: YES INDEED. Cartophiliac sounded pretty confident with his no, but if I made a mistake on this one I couldn't find it in my re-research.
10. Eritrea: YOU BETCHA
11. Bosnia: NOPE
12. Montenegro: YEP
shoot me now and put me out of my stupidity.
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteOur winners this week all scored 11/12.
The TQXXV Gold Star goes to Cartophiliac, making him the sixth back-to-back Thursday Quiz champion. It is only his third Quiz Star, but he has piled them all up in only four weeks.
The Silver goes to drschnell, his third Silver Star and fifth Star overall.
The Blue Star goes to Mr. Shain, whose late-in-the-day entry knocked the guys with the fine score of 10/12 -- Phineas and ChuckDaddy -- out of star territory. It's Mr. Shain's fifth Thursday Quiz Star.
Kudos across the board.
ReplyDelete@Elizabeth: You have no idea how hard "not true"/"not false" was to score. Serves me right.
@Carto: I enjoyed sharing "by this time next year, Serbia will be the size of Rhode Island" with my Bosnian work partner.
But I am wounded -- wounded, sir! -- that after twenty-five weeks, I would be thought capable of playing games with the date. As I have said before: tricksy, but never weasely.
@d: For a second there, I thought you were quoting Spandau Ballet on me. Scarey 80s flashback.
@DrSchnell: I think the original Pakistan "worked" pretty well indeed, if you happened to be in the West Pakistan ruling elite. They made it through almost 25 years in that arrangement, that's the amazing thing.
@CriticalBill: Welcome back, sir! Long time no see!
@Rebel: Yeah, sometimes countries remarry.... Germany.... Vietnam.... the United States of America....
@Phineas: I apologize for the lack of a Lithuania reference in this weeks quiz.
@Mr. Shain: Yeah, Egypt went it alone with the name for another decade or so.
@Chuck: Welcome back to Quiz action, my man!
@Karin: Blam!! Blam!!
Well, Son of a Gambian Rug Merchant!
ReplyDeleteI was wrong about Senegambia. It just sounded too implausibly silly.
Sort of like, if someone had taken a beautiful country name like Tanganyika and merged it with Zanzibar to create a silly country name like Tanzania...
Thanks for the kudos on the quiz win. You'll notice I score well on history and geography, but stank at Monday's quiz on art. When Mrs. Cartophiliac (the art history major) and I team up in Trivial Pursuit we are unstoppable!
would you please just have a quiz on 80s hair bands or useless pop culture trivia, so i can feel like i actually know something even though it's perfectly pointless? or how 'bout that Jayhawks quiz you promised?
ReplyDelete