The Great TechWorld

TechnoHistory Trivia Challenge

2011Answers

Answers: Round 1

1. When did this man demonstrate the world’s first truly ‘mobile’

commercial phone?

a. 1973

Research and image source: http://www.techfresh.net/motorola-dynatac-8000x-worlds-first-mobile-phone/

In April 1973, Dr Martin Cooper, former general manager for the systems division at Motorola, invented the mobile phone prototype and made the first call to Joel Engel, his rival, head of research at Bell Labs. However, the Russians, Chinese, Japanese, British and USA had developed backpack mobile field phones for military purposes much earlier.

2. What are the tiles on the Sydney Opera House made of?

Image source: http://www.doobybrain.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/03/sydney-opera-house.jpgResearch reference: http://www.sydneyoperahouse.com/uploadedFiles/About_Us/Corporate_Information/Content_AboutUs_WorldHeritage.pdf

c. Ceramic

“ The ribs of the shells arecovered with chevron-shaped, precast concrete tile lids– the shallow dishes clad with ceramic tiles…”

3. Which gases form the plasma in plasma TV?

c. Ne and Xe

Xenon and neon gas is contained in hundreds of thousands of tiny cells between glass glass, with electrodes that cause the gas to ionize and form a plasma. As the gas ions collide, photons are emitted. Varying the pulses of current in different cells thousands of times per second, increases or decreases the intensity of each subpixel color, creating billions of different combinations of red, green and blue, to produce most of the visible colors.

Image source: www.reviewzine.com/lg-42pc1d-42inch-plasma-tv/Research source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plasma_display#Functional_details

4. Which Physics theory explains the paradox that energy doesn’t get used up and disappear?

a. Law Of Conservation Of Energy

The word conservation= keep the same; save; preserve.

The law of conservation of energy states:Energy may neither be created nor destroyed. Therefore the sum of all the energies in the system is a constant.Research source: http://library.thinkquest.org/2745/data/lawce1.htm

5. When did DVD begin really replacing VHS video cassettes in popularity?c. 2003

Research and Image source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VCR#The_beginning_of_the_end.3F

“DVD rentals in the United States first exceeded those of VHS in June 2003, and in 2005 the president of the Video Software Dealers Association predicted that 2006 would be the last year for major releases on VHS.”

6. In 1800, Robert Fulton went to see Napoleon Bonaparte to develop:

b. submarines

Image source: http://www.lib.utexas.edu/photodraw/portraits/Research source:http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/221963/Robert-Fulton

This American inventor, engineer, and artist brought steamboats from experimental stage to commercial success. He also designed a system of inland waterways, a submarine, and a warship. In 1797 he proposed the idea of a submarine, the “Nautilus,” for France to use to creep under the hulls of British warships and leave a powder charge to be exploded later. Napoleaon Bonaparte was interested but the French government rejected the idea as an atrocious and dishonourable way to fight. In 1800 he built the “Nautilus” at his own expense and demonstrated it in the River Seine.

7. Which commercial product is made from polyoxybenzylmethylenglycolanhydride

a. Bakelite

Bakelite (pronounced [bеɪkɨlaɪt]), the world's first synthetic plastic was developed in 1907–1909 by Belgian Dr. Leo Baekeland. Formed by the reaction under heat and pressure of phenol (a toxic, colourless crystalline solid) and formaldehyde (a simple organic compound)…It was used in such diverse products as radio and telephone casings and electrical insulators kitchenware, jewellery, pipe stems, and children's toys.

Image and Research source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyoxybenzylmethylenglycolanhydride

8. What is this?

b. A trebuchet

The trebuchet was the dominant siege weapon in Europe from 850AD to 1350AD, lasting 100 years after the introduction of gunpowder. In England it was called an ingenium, and the technicians which worked on the weapon were ingeniators (Engineers). Larger versions were able to throw large stones, rotting flesh and bowls of hot coals..The trebuchet operates by harnessing the potential energy of a suspended weight. Multiple design variables optimized range and throw-weight.

Image source: commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Trebuchet.jpg Research source: http://nfo.edu/trebuche.htm

9. Where was gunpowder first developed?

b.China

An explosive mixture of saltpeter (potassium nitrate), sulfur, and charcoal, the history of gunpowder goes back to A.D. 850 in China…most likely created by alchemists—people attempting to produce gold artificially, by combining other substances.

Image source: blogs.reuters.com/oddly-enough/tag/fireworks/ Research source: http://www.enotes.com/science-fact-finder/general-science-technology/when-where-was-gunpowder-invented

10. In the early days of Australia railways, track maintenance workers were known by a name that continues today. What were they called?

c. fettlers

Image and research source: http://www.expedition360.com/australia_lessons_history/rail_line_workers.jpg

Originally fettling meant to sand and grind small imperfections from metal, but came to mean fiddling/tinkering with machines (e.g. "I've spent all day fettling with my car") and in parts of England, fettler was used to mean friend or mate (e.g. "How's tha' doing fettler?"). To maintain the tracks of the Trans-Australian Railway across the Nullarbor Plain from South Australia to Western Australia outback “fettler” settlements were established along the line to accommodate a permanent workforce

BONUS POINTS for Round 1•One point for each person in your group who has braces on their teeth•One point for each person in your group wearing glasses•One point for each person in your group who does not own a mobile phone•One point for each person in your group wearing a watch•One point for each person in your group who does not use a laptop at school•One point for each person in your group who knows how to sail a boat

Answers: Round 2

1. How can you describe

the gear ratio in this example?

b. 6:1

The red gear has three times the diameter of the yellow gear, and the blue gear has two times the diameter of the red gear (giving a 6:1 ratio). The smaller gear has to spin so much faster to cover the same distance covered when the larger gear spins once. The teeth on gears prevent slippage between the gears and also help determine exact gear ratios – you just count the number of teeth and divide since the teeth interlock with each other.

Image and research source: http://auto.howstuffworks.com/gears3.htm

2. What is this?

c. crossbow

Less physical strength needed than for a longbow (uses the archer's buttock and thigh muscles; much stronger than arm and chest muscles required by a standard bow). This is a spring mechanism. If you compress a spring or pull a spring from either end it stores potential energy, released as kinetic energy as the bow arm returns to its normal shape.

Image and reference source: http://www.articlesbase.com/sports-and-fitness-articles/how-a-crossbow-works-an-educational-guide-to-crossbows-501289.html

13. A field trip means …researching a topicvisiting a location for studywriting up an investigation

d. all of the above

14. What % of Australian households had digital TV access by the end of 2008?

b. 42%

A 2007 survey by the Australian Communication and Media Authority showed around 42% of households had digital broadcast access.  Interestingly, approximately one third of all those surveyed were completely unaware that the analog service was to be discontinued.  Hi-definition was rarely raised as a reason to convert; access to more channels was seen as far more important.

Source: http://www.itwire.com/content/view/19339/53/

15. You slam on the car brakes in a panic, and skid to a halt on a straight, dry, level road. If you had been traveling twice as fast, what distance would the car have skidded, under the same conditions?

a. 4 times further

Kinetic energy of motion is the main idea hereThe car is hurtling along at speed v with mass m. Its kinetic energy K is given by K = ½mv² This energy gets converted to heat in the tires and road and air as the car skids to a stop. The conversion of kinetic energy to heat is done by the work of friction, W, which is just the friction force times the distance d the car skids: W = fd = µmgd

The initial kinetic energy (K) equates to the work (W ) done by friction in slowing the car down and so we calculate the skidmark distance d: W = K µmgd = ½mv² => d = v²/2µg

The distance d increases as the square of the speed v and: a doubling of speed quadruples d. The car's mass does not matter: a heavier car has just as much more kinetic energy as work done by friction per meter skid, so the skid length is the same. The key thing is the coefficient of friction µ for the particular tire/road combination.

Research and image source: http://www.bsharp.org/physics/stuff/skidmarks.html

16. What was invented in China in the first century BC that revolutionised transport?

b.wheelbarrow

General Chuko Liang (181-234 A.D.) of China is considered to be the inventor of the wheelbarrow. He used wheelbarrows to transport battlefield supplies and injured soldiers. The ancient Chinese wheelbarrows often had two wheels and required two men to propel and steer. The earliest depictions of single-wheel Chinese wheelbarrows come from 2nd century Han Dynasty tomb murals. Image and research source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheelbarrow#Ancient_China

17. What is this? c. Gatling gun

This weapon used multiple rotating barrels turned by a hand crank, firing loose (no belt) metal cartridge

ammunition using a gravity feed system from a hopper. The Gatling gun's innovation lay in the gravity feed

reloading mechanism, which allowed unskilled operators to achieve a relatively high rate of fire.

Used in the 1860s during the American Civil War; based on an 1851 invention of (the mitrailleuse) used by the

Belgian Army.

Image and Research source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gatling_gun

18. A primary source

d. Is an artifact or document that comes directly from the historical timeframe

A source from the time of an event. The account of an eyewitness, some newspaper articles, news footage, correspondence, diaries, as well as artifacts from the time of the event are all examples of primary sources. There are also “secondary sources” and “tertiary sources”, where the original data has been interpreted/explained by the commentary of others, such as researchers in the light of other evidence available to them.

Image source: http://ncmuseumofhistory.org/workshops/womenshistory/primary.htmResearch source: http://academic.evergreen.edu/curricular/stilllooking/reference/glossary.htm#p

19. What is this?

b. Typewriter

The Odell 1 from 1889 is a linear index typewriter. To type, one moves the handle to the desired character and pushes down. The carriage moves perpendicular to the handle movement. The first model typed only in capitals.

Image and Research source: http://www.antiquetypewriters.com/collection/index-odell1.htm

20. Which country in the world generates most energy from windpower?

a. USA (1) and China (2) have recently taken over the lead from Germany in the last 2 years, according to the World Wind Energy Association

Image source: http://www.impactlab.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/06/wind_farm-82.jpgData source: http://www.wwindea.org/home/index.php

BONUS POINTS for Round 2

• One point for each person in your group who has ironed a shirt

• One point for each person in your group who has fixed a punctured tyre

• One point for each person in your group who has been on a plane in the last 6 months

• One point for each person in your group who has a Meccano set at home

• One point for each person in your group who is wearing a bra

• One point for each person in your group who can knit

Answers: ROUND 3

21. The first shadow clock like this was in usec. 3500 years ago

Image source: http://www.timekeepingsite.org/sundial.jpgResearch source: http://inventors.about.com/library/weekly/aa071401a.htm

Two basic components define a clock: •a regular, constant or repetitive process or action to mark off equal increments of time. eg tracking the sun across the sky, candles marked in increments, sand glasses (hourglasses)•a means of keeping track of the increments of time and displaying the result. Such as the position of clock hands.

This Egyptian device divided a sunlit day into 10 parts plus two "twilight hours" morning and evening. The merkhet, the oldest known astronomical tool, was an associated Egyptian development around 2600 years ago. Two merkhets lined up with the Pole Star could then be used to mark off night hours by determining when certain other stars crossed the meridian.

22. Glass is defined as amorphous because...

b. it's neither a solid nor a liquid but exists in a vitreous state

Definitions from http://encarta.msn.com/dictionary_/amorphous.html

1. without shape: without any clear shape, form, or structure

2. not classifiable: not obviously belonging to any category or type

3. chemistry geology not crystalline: without a crystalline structure

[FROM Latin< Greek amorphos "without shape" < morphē "shape"]= glassy

23. A 400-W computer (with monitor) is turned on for exactly 8 hours per day. If electricity costs 10 cents per kWh, how much does it cost to run the computer annually?

a.$116.80

Research source: Doug Medwell, ASMS

Image source: http://www.inhabitat.com/wp-content/uploads/greenhpdesktop.jpg

24. What is this ?

c. stump jump plough

Image and Research source: http://www.southaustralianhistory.com.au/inventors.htm

1876 developed by the brothers Richard and Clarence Smith of Kalkabury in SA. Most of the newly opened farming land in South Australia was in the Mallee, and ploughs were of little use as the blades would often hit old stumps or rocks. Their revolutionary idea was a plough with a blade which would rise on striking an obstacle and fall down back into the soil with the help of a hinged beam or draft chain.

25. Where was the rotunda in Elder Park in Adelaide manufactured?

d. Glasgow, Scotland

Image source: picasaweb.google.com/.../s7vbV36VCwEAJqWrRHRw9AResearch source: http://www.environment.sa.gov.au/heritage/pdfs/showcasing/elderpark_rotunda.pdf

This octagonal rotunda erected in 1882 from pre-fabricated sections sent out from Scotland was gifted to the City by philanthropist, Thomas Elder. The cast-iron structure was fabricated by MacFarlane’s Saracen Foundry in Glasgow, Scotland, and is a rare Australian example of this company’s work.

26. What is the Chunnel?

b. A way to travel underwater from France to England

50.5-kilometre undersea rail tunnel linking Kent in England with Calais in northern France. At its lowest point it is 75 m deep.] and has the longest undersea portion of any tunnel in the world, but the Seikan Tunnel in Japan is both longer and deeper overall, at 53.85 kilometres and 240 metres depth.

The tunnel carries high-speed Eurostar passenger trains, Eurotunnel ro-ro vehicle transport that are the largest in the world and international rail freight trains

Research source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Channel_Tunnel

Image source: http://weburbanist.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/channel-tunnel-chunnel-construction.jpg

27. Why is Stainless Steel stainless?

d. the chrome oxide component forms an invisible protective outer layer

A minimum of 12% chromium in the steel makes it resist rust, or stain 'less' than other types of steel. The chromium combines with oxygen in the atmosphere to form a thin, invisible layer of chrome-containing oxide, called the passive film. The sizes of chromium atoms and their oxides are similar, so they pack neatly together on the surface of the

metal, forming a stable layer only a few atoms thick.

Research source: http://chemistry.about.com/cs/metalsandalloys/a/aa071201a.htm

28. What is this?

c. early sewing machine

Image source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Elias_Howe_sewing_machine.png

The first functional sewing machine was invented by the French tailor, Barthelemy Thimonnier, in 1830. It used only one thread and a hooked needle that made the same chain stitch used with embroidery.

The inventor was almost killed by an enraged group of French tailors who burnt down his garment factory because they feared unemployment as a result of his new invention.

Research source: http://inventors.about.com/od/sstartinventions/a/sewing_machine.htm

29. About how much will Australia earn in mineral exports (eg iron ore, uranium, copper) 2010-2011?

c. $177 billion

Image source: www.kiwihyde.com/?p=68

The Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics (ABARE) forecasts Australia’s mineral and energy exports in 2010–11 will increase by 28 per cent to $177 billion. The record value reflects higher prices for bulk commodities, crude oil and most base metals and higher export volumes for all major minerals and energy commodities. The value of metal and other mineral exports in 2010–11 is forecast to increase by 29 per cent to $105 billion, underpinned by higher earnings from iron ore (up 47 per cent), copper (35 per cent), gold (20 per cent) and alumina (10 per cent). Our biggest markets are Japan, China, South Korea, Europe, Research Source: http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/09/10/2360976.htm

30. What is this?

a. carburetor

Most auto carburetors have two separate fuel delivery systems, one to supply the correct fuel-to-air mixture (approximately 1 part fuel to 14.7 parts air by weight) at idling speed and one to supply fuel at high speed. This is a Maxwell carburetor 1906 model.Image and research resource http://www.maxwell-messenger.info/Articles/carburetors/carb.htm

BONUS POINTS for Round 3• One point for each person in your group who has used

scuba gear in diving• One point for each person in your group who has used a

bow and arrow• One point for each person in your group who has an ice-

cream maker at home• One point for each person in your group who has an

engineer or architect in the family • One point for each person in your group who owns high

heeled shoes.• One point for each person in your group who has used a

sewing machine successfully

Answers: Round 4

31. Who invented modern frozen food processing (apart from the Inuit and Sámi community who always had it)?

a. Charles Birdseye

Image source: www.aripack.com/FrozenFood.html

Research source: http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blfrfood.htm

In 1923, with an investment of $7 for an electric fan, buckets of brine, and cakes of ice, American Clarence Birdseye invented and later perfected a system of packing fresh food into waxed cardboard boxes and flash-freezing under high pressure. The first quick-frozen vegetables, fruits, seafoods, and meat were sold to the public for the first time in 1930 in Springfield, Massachusetts, under the tradename Birds Eye Frosted

Foods®.

32. What is this?

d. block and tackle

A block and tackle is a simple but highly effective lifting device, thought to be invented by Archimedes, used extensively for construction in the Ancient World. The engineering of a block and tackle uses pulleys to distribute the weight of a heavy object and make it possible for one person or a small crew to move very heavy objects relatively safely

Research source: http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-block-and-tackle.htm

33.Where would you find tunnel thrusters?

b. in a ship’s hull

Tunnel thrusters are primarily used for docking, slow speed maneuvering, emergency steering and station keeping at zero or slow forward speed in large boats/ships. Tunnel thrusters are installed transversely in the bow or the stern of a vessel. Large vessels usually have one or more tunnels built into the bow below the waterline. An impeller in the tunnel can create thrust in either direction which makes the ship turn.

Research and Image source: http://www.thrustmastertexas.com/products/tunnelThrusters.html

34. Which word best describes what this picture demonstrates?

c. gravity

Image source: http://www.lawyersatlanta.com/imgages/roller%20coaster.jpg

A roller coaster relies on energy stored in the force of gravity to make it move. The higher the roller coaster is above the earth's surface, the more gravitational potential energy it has. The top of the first hill is the highest point on the track, and the roller coaster is dragged up there by a chain. When it passes over the top of the first hill, its total energy is greatest. Most of that total energy is gravitational potential energy but a small amount is kinetic energy, the energy of motion. First, it begins to transform that energy from one form to another--from gravitational potential energy to kinetic energy and from kinetic energy to gravitational potential energy, back and forth. Second, it begins to transfer some of its energy to its environment, mostly in the form of heat and sound. Because of this lost energy, the roller coaster can't return to its original height after coasting down hill. Each successive hill must be lower than the previous hill. Eventually the roller coaster has lost so much of its original total energy that the ride ends. Resaerch source: http://www.fsus.fsu.edu/mcquone/Amusepark/rollercoaster/howcstrworks.htm

35. What common factor links all these processes?

c. energy

http://www.eia.doe.gov/kids/energyfacts/science/images/EnergyTransformations.gif

36. Where is the world’s biggest dam?

b. The Yangtze River (China)

http://content.zdnet.com/2346-9595_22-177275.html

http://www.pbs.org/itvs/greatwall/

Recently completed and now filling, the Three Gorges Dam will produce the energy of 15 nuclear power plants and tame some of the country’s deadliest floods. To China's leaders, the dam is the greatest engineering feat since the construction of the Great Wall

37. What is Torque?

a. force that rotates or turns things

Torque = torsion or twisting

Tightening the nuts on a car/bike wheel is a good example. When you use a wrench, you apply a force to the handle. This force creates a torque on the nut, which tends to turn it around. A car engine creates torque and uses it to spin the crankshaft in much the same way:

Referencehttp://auto.howstuffworks.com/auto-parts/towing/towing-capacity/information/fpte4.htm

38. Why did some really old bikes have a huge front wheel?

b. they had no bike-chain or gears

This is an application of direct drive. About 1870, James Starley, described as the father of the bicycle industry, and others began producing bicycles based on the French boneshaker but with front wheels of increasing size, because larger front wheels, up to 1.5 m in diameter, enabled higher speeds on bicycles limited to direct drive.

Research source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penny_farthingImage source: http://academic.evergreen.edu/curricular/adaptation/pics/PennyFarthing.jpg

39. What does an odometer measure?

d. distance

An instrument for indicating the distance traveled by a vehicle, typically by measuring the number of rotations of a wheel or fan whose rate of rotation depends on the speed of the vehicle.

Reference: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/odometer

40. Where is the world’s most ambitious underwater construction being built?

d. Dubai

Research and image source: http://www.designbuild-network.com/projects/Hydropolis/Hydropolis4.html

Hydropolis will be the world's first luxury underwater hotel, of three elements: land station with connecting tunnel, which will transport people by train to the 220 suites within the submarine leisure complex in one of the largest contemporary construction projects in the world, covering an area of

260 hectares The architect views his creation as a place to experience the tranquility and inspiration of the underwater world. It will have a cosmetic surgery clinic, a marine biological research laboratory and conference facilities. $490 million to build , $5500 to stay one night.

BONUS POINTS for Round 4 One point for each person in your group who can

produce a USB right now One point for each person in your group whose family

has a ride-on mower One point for each person in your group whose family

has a vintage car One point for each person in your group who has driven

a tractor One point for each person in your group who has been

on a steam train One point for each person in your group who has made

a model plane that actually flew

End of Quiz