I’ve set up a QI General Ignorance quiz on Facebook, and this page will give you the answers in further detail.
If you want to take the quiz first then go to XXXXXXXXXXXXX.
QUESTION 1
How many wives did Henry VIII have?
Answer: 2
1st marriage declared invalid on legal grounds by Henry (as head of the Church of England)
2nd marriage declared illegal by the pope
3rd marriage annulled by Henry(as head of the Church of England)
4th marriage was annulled
5th marriage annulled by Henry(as head of the Church of England)
This means that Henry was only legally married to Anne of Cleves & Catherine Parr.
QUESTION 2
What is the driest desert in the world?
Answer: Antarctica
A desert is technically defined as a place that receives less than 254mm (1 inch) of rain a year. Antarctica’s average annual rainfall is about the same, but 2% of it receives no rain at all.
The second driest place on earth is the Atacama Desert in Chile. In some areas, it has not rained for 400 years.
QUESTION 3
Name the tallest mountain in the world?
Answer: Mauna Kea (in Hawaii)
This is an inactive volcano, standing at 4,206 metres (13,799 feet) above sea level.
With mountains, the highest is measured from sea level, but the tallest is measured from the bottom of the mountain to the top. This means that Mount Everest is NOT the tallest mountain, though it is the highest.
QUESTION 4
How many galaxies are visible to the naked eye?
Answer: 4
You could say that the answer is two though, as only two can be seen from any one point, and one of those is the Milky Way – our own galaxy.
QUESTION 5
Who invented the steam engine?
Answer: A Heron from Egypt
Heron lived in Alexandria around AD 62 and is best known as a mathematician. he managed to use steam to spin a shere at 1500 rpm, using the same principle as jet propulsion.
This invention was seen as a toy though, as nobody could see a use for the invention.
