IBA High School Rounds

Question Packet 1

1. Though he was born and educated in Ireland, he once declared:  "I am not of this vile country.  I am an Englishman."  He wrote a famous love poem, Cadenus and Vanessa, but is best known as a great satirist.  He mocked the literary pedantry of his day in The Battle of the Books and attacked his society's religious contentions in The Tale of a Tub.  In A Modest Proposal, he suggests cannibalism as a solution to the problem of Irish poverty.  For ten points, name this famous creator of the lands of Brobdingnag and Liliput.  

Answer: Jonathan Swift

2. Since it is located in a remote and almost inaccessible region, it was first sighted from the air, and it is named for the American aviator who discovered it in 1937.  Located on a tributary of the Canoni river in Bolivar State, Venezuela, it drops over 3,000 feet.  For ten points, name the world's highest uninterrupted waterfall.  

Answer: Angel Falls

3. According to the Pragmatic Sanction, Maria Theresa was to succeed her father Charles VII, who had no male heir, and was to take control of all his lands.  This arrangement was agreed to by the rulers of Europe, but when Charles died in 1740, a conflict over his lands broke out which was not resolved until the Treaty of Aix-la-Chappelle was signed in 1748.  For ten points, name this war.  

Answer: The War of the Austrian Succession

4. In its elemental form, it is used in phonograph needles, lightning arresters, resistance thermometers and other electrical devices. Combined with other metals, it becomes an effective neutron-shielding material--for this reason, steels containing it are often used as control rods in nuclear reactors.  It is found primarily in the form of the compounds colemanite and borax.  FOr ten points, name this element with atomic number 5.  

Answer: Boron

5. This swift-footed young woman refused to marry any suitor who could not defeat her in a footrace.  Melanion succeeded at last by dropping three golden apples whcih she could not resist stopping to pick up. For ten points, name this figure from greek myth.  

Answer: Atalanta

6. A German music lover named Ludwig Kochel (pronounced kirchull) catalogued the works of this composer, and as a result his works are often identified by their "K" number, standing for Kochel.  The composer's work includes 41 symphonies and numerous operas, including Cosi Fan Tutti, Don Giovanni and The Magic Flute.  For ten points, identify this Austrian composer.  

Answer: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

7. Born in 1917, the son of a well-known illuistrator, he became one of the most famous twentieth century artists.  His works include Winter 1946 and Distant Thunder as well as the Helga pictures, a series produced between 1970 and 1985.  For ten points, name this painter of Christina's World.  

Answer: Andrew Wyeth

8. Their highest peak, at Slide Mountain, is only 4,204 feet above sea level, but they are quite scenic nonetheless.  Covered with thick forests, they are located in southeastern New York state.  For ten points, name this group of mountains made famous by Washington Irving's Rip Van Winkle.  

Answer: The Catskill Mountains

9. Time Must Have a Stop, Point Counter Point and Eyeless in Gaza are less-well known works by this well known English writer.  The rock band The Doors took their name from his essay "The Doors of Perception," which deals with the effects of hallucinogens.  For ten points, name this grandson of a famous biologist whose novels include Brave New World.  

Answer: Aldous Huxley

10. It has a long, broad neck made of teak and a body made of either wood or a very large gourd.  It has six or seven strings which are plucked with the fingers, and between twelve and twenty strings which vibrate sympathetically, creating the instrument's characteristic drone.  It was probably invented around a. d. 1200, and was originally intended to play classical Indian compositions known as ragas.  Its most famous master is Ravi Shankar.  For ten points, name this instrument, made popular in the west by George Harrison.  

Answer: The sitar

11. This Austrian shared the 1933 Nobel Prize for physics with Paul Dirac.  His most important contribution to physics is his formulation of wave mechanics, a form of quantum mechanics, and its crux, the wave equation.  For ten points, name this physicist known for his paradox involving a cat.  

Answer: Erwin Schrodinger

12. This author, who died in the same year as Shakespeare, spent five years as a slave in Algiers after his ship was captured by Barbary pirates.  After returning to Spain, he lived in poverty for many years before finally achieving literary success.  His works include the plays El trato de Argel and La Numancia.  For ten points, name this author of Don Quixote.  

Answer: Miguel de Cervantes

13. The first time the Supreme Court invalidated a state law was in 1810, when it ruled that the legislature of Georgia had acted illegally in issuing grants of land along the Yazoo River.  For ten points, name the case in which this ruling was made.  

Answer: Fletcher v. Peck

14. It comes on two varieties, rough and smooth, and is the location of most ribosomes.  For ten points, name this cellular structure, which plays a key rpole in protein production.  

Answer: endoplasmic reticulum

15. This battle took place in November, 1811.  Growing dissatisfaction among the Indian tribes in the Indiana territory had culminated in a confederacy under Tecumseh and the Prophet which was engaged by U. S. troops under William Henry Harrison.  Although the outcome was indecisive, Harrison immediately gained a military reputation.  For ten points, name the battle.  

Answer: The battle of Tippecanoe Creek

16. To physics he contributed the principle of inertia, but little else of any value.  To mathematics he contributed the foundations of analytic geometry, and to philosophy he contributed the foundations of rationalist thought.  For ten points, name this 17th century French philosopher, famous for his Discourse on Method.  

Answer: Rene Descartes

17. He graduated from West Point in 1909, and after taking p[art in General John Pershing's expedition into Mexico in 1916, was assigned to Pershing's staff at the head of the American Expeditionary Force sent to France in 1917.  In World War II, he led campaigns in north Africa, Sicily and Germany.  For ten points, name this American soldier known as "Old Blood and Guts."  

Answer: George Patton

18. She lived from 1908 to 1989 and is known for her portrayala of strong- willed women.  Her first film, Bad Sister, appeared in 1931, and she subsequently starred in Of Human Bondage and All About Eve.  She won two Oscars for best actress--in 1935 for Dangerous, and in 1938 for Jezebel.  For ten points, name this movie star.  

Answer: Bette Davis

19. A native of New York state, he went to California at the age of nineteen where he mined gold and taught school before becoming a journalist and helping to found The Overland Monthly.  His poetry is collectedin The Lost Galleon and Other Tales, and his credits include a satirical work, Condensed Novels.  He is perhaps best known for his short stories dealing with the now stereotyped characters of the old west.  These include "The Outcasts of Poker Flat" and "The Luck of Roaring Camp."  For ten points, name this American author.  

Answer: Bret Harte

20. (Pencil and paper may be required.)  Consider the following equation:    7X^2 + 28X + 331 = 7  (Seven x squared plus twenty-eight x plus three hundred thirty-one equals seven).  For ten points, give the real part of both solutions to this equation.  

Answer: -2

21. Born in 1804, this American author added a "w" to his surname, presumably to distance himself from ancestors who had participated in the Salem witch trials.  Among his works is The Blithedale Romance, dealing with his experience with the Brook Farm experimental community.  He is well known for his short stories, which are collected in such volumes as Twice Told Tales and Mosses form an Old Manse.  For ten points, name this author of The Scarlet Letter.  

Answer: Nathaniel Hawthorne

IBA High School Rounds

Question Packet 1                           

1. (30 points possible)  For ten points each, identify the Shakespearean play in which each of the following lines is spoken:  

1)  "What's in a name?"  

Answer: Romeo and Juliet

2)  "Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn and cauldron bubble,"  

Answer: Macbeth

3)  "Now is the winter of our discontent Answer:  Made glorious summer by this sun of York,"  

Answer: Richard III

2. (30 points possible)  For ten points each, identify the president under which each of the following vice presidents served:  

1)  John Tyler  

Answer: William Henry Harrison

2)  Millard Fillmore  

Answer: Zachary Taylor

3)  Richard Nixon  

Answer: Dwight Eisenhower

3. (30 points possible)  Identify this nation, 30-20-10:  

1)  Its east and west coasts are lined, respectively, by the mountain ranges known as the Eastern Ghats and the Western Ghats.  

2)  It shares borders with Nepal, Bhutan and Bangla Desh.  

3)  Its rivers include the Godavari and the Ganges, and its cities include Agra, Banares and Madras.  

Answer: India

4. (Possible 30 points)  For ten points each, identify the American novels in which each of the following characters appears:  

1)  Nick Carraway  

Answer: The Great Gatsby

2)  Tom Joad  

Answer: The Grapes of Wrath

3)  Queequeg  

Answer: Moby Dick

5. (Possible 30 points)  For a stated number of points, identify the composers of the following symphonies:  

1) For five points:  No. 9, the "Choral Symphony"  

Answer: Ludwig van Beethoven

2) For ten points:  No. 41, the "Jupiter Symphony"  

Answer: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

3) For fifteen popints:  No. 8, the "Unfinished Symphony"  

Answer: Franz Schubert

6. (Possible 25 points)  Born in Pennsylvania in 1844, she lived for several years in Paris with her family, and later, afetr returning to America, went abroad to study art.  She became one of the leaders of the impressionist movement, and her works include Reading "Le Figaro," Girl Arranging her Hair, and The Bath.  For twenty-five points, identify this American artist.  

Answer: Mary Cassatt

7. (Possible 30 points)  For ten points each, given a pair of states, identify the river which forms the border or part of the border between them.  

1)  Georgia and South Carolina  

Answer: Savannah

2)  Texas and Louisiana  

Answer: Sabine

3)  Nebraska and Iowa  

Answer: Missouri

8. (25 points possible)  Suppose that a room is filled with a certain number of human adults.  Further suppose that exactly 60% of the men in the room are married to women who are also in the room.  Suppose also that exactly 33 of the people in the room have red hair.  In addition, suppose that all of the women in the room have red hair. First, for ten points, what is the highest number that could be the population of the room?  

Answer: 88

Now, for five points, what is the lowest number that could be the population of the room?  

Answer: 33

Finally, if we make the additional supposition that the number of women in the room must be a multiple of 11, then for ten points, what is the smallest number that could be the population of the room?  

Answer: 33

9. (30 points possible)  For five points each, identify each of the following statements as one of Newton's three laws of motion, one of Kepler's laws, or none of the above.  If you identify a statement as one of Newton's or Kepler's laws, then you must specify which law it is, i. e. whether it is the first, second or third.  

1)  For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.  

Answer: Newton's third law

2)  The radius vector joining the sun to any given planet sweeps out equal areas in equal times.  

Answer: Kepler's second law

3)  The gravitational force is directly proportional to the product of the masses of two bodies and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them.  

Answer: None of the above

4)  The square of a planet's period of revolution is proportional to the cube of its mean distance from the sun.  

Answer: Kepler's third law

5)  Force equals mass times acceleration.  

Answer: Newton's second law

6)  A body under the influence of no external forces moves at a constant speed in a constant direction.  

Answer: Newton's first law

10. (Possible 30 points)  Identify the author from pairs of works, 30-20- 10:  

1)  Men Without Women, and The Torrents of Spring  

2)  Death in the Afternoon, and For Whom the Bell Tolls  

3)  A Farewell to Arms, and The Sun Also Rises  

Answer: Ernest Hemingway

11. (Possible 25 points)  Born in 1821, this Frenchman is considerred one of the greatets authors of the 19th century.  Though his name is associated with Naturalism, his writing also encompasses elements of romanticism, and he has a tendency toward lyricism which is subordinated to his theories of art.  For 25 points, name this author, whose works include The Sentimental Education and Madame Bovary.  

Answer: Gustave Flaubert

12. (30 points possible)  This successful Washington D. C. lawyer was appointed undersecretary of state by Franklin Roosevelt in 1945 and between 1949 and 1953 served as Secretary of State under Harry Truman.  He was never outspokenly opposed to the Soviet Union and as a result was accused of being "soft on communism."  During his term in the cabinet he oversawthe development of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the Baruch Plan for the international control of atomic energy, and the Marshall Plan for economic recovery in Europe.  For thirty points, name this American statesman.  

Answer: Dean Acheson

13. (30 points possible)  For ten points each, identify the following sects of Islam:  

1)  The largest Islamic sect, it acknowledges the first four caliphs as rightful successor of Muhammed.  It derives its name from the Arabic for the oral law, which it places on an equal status with the Koran itself.  

Answer: The Sunnites

2)  This fundamentalist sect, known for its radicalism in politics as well as in theology, rejects the three Sunni caliphs and considers Ali the rightful successor of Muhammed.  It also considers the Sunna, or oral law, to be apocryphal, with no authority.  

Answer: The Shiites

3)  Members of this mystical sect wear woolen garments to symbolize their renunciation of worldly comforts, and the sect derives its name from the Arabic word for wool.  

Answer: The Sufis

14. Identify this man, 30-20-10:  

1)  Early in his career, he was known for directing English action films such as The Lodger, which was based on the Jack the Ripper Murders.  

2)  In the film Lifeboat, he appears in a newspaper ad.  

3)  His credits as director include Rebecca, North by Northwest, and Frenzy.  

Answer: Alfred Hitchcock

15. (30 points possible)  Given an ancient city, name the wonder of the ancient world which is located in or near that city.  For each correct answer after your first, you will receive fiove points:  

1)  Ephesus   Answer: The Temple of ARtemis

2)  Giza   Answer: The Pyramids

3)  Alexandria   Answer: The Lighthouse of Alexandria

4)  Babylon   Answer: The Hanging Gardens

5)  Halicarnassus   Answer: the Mausoleum

6)  Olympia   Answer: The Statue of Zeus

7)  Rhodes   Answer: The Colossus

16. (25 points possible) This trickster from Greek mythology is sometimes held to be the true father of Odysseus.  He is best known for revealing to Asopus that Zeus had raped his daughter.  As punishment for this crime, Zeus condemned him to eternally roll a stone up a hill, which rolls back down the hill whenever it reaches the top, symbolizing fruitless labor.  For twenty-five points, identify this mythical figure.  

Answer: Sisyphus

17. (30 points possible)  Organisms were formally classified as either plants or animals, but modern biologists recognize no less than five kingdoms.  For fifteen points each, identify the following kingdoms:  

1)  This kingdom contains all prokaryotic oranisms, that is to say, all organisms in which cells do not have clearly defined nuclei.  

Answer: Monera

2)  This kingdom contains the phyla Protozoa, Chrysophyta, Pyrrophyta and Euglenophyta.  Its members are eukaryotic unicellular organisms.  

Answer: Protista

18. (30 points possible)  Identify the following general classes of organic compounds important to life:  

1)  These compounds consist of chains of carbon atoms to which hydrogen and oxygen atoms are attached in a 2:1 ratio.  

Answer: Carbohydrates

2)  These compounds contain long hydrocarbon chains.  Examples include steroids, waxes, and carotenes.  

Answer: Lipids

3)  These organic acids consist of nucleotides.  Examples include DNA and RNA.  

Answer: Nucleic acids

19. (30 points possible)  For ten points each, identify the treaties which ended the following European wars:  

1)  The 30 Years War   Answer: The Treaty of Westphalia

2)  The War of the Spanish Succession Answer: The Peace of Utrecht

3)  The War of the Austrian Succession Answer: The Treaty of Aix-la-Chappelle

20. (30 points possible)  For five points each, identify the following amendments to the U. S. Constitution:  

1)  This amendment provides that in suits at common law where the value in controversy exceeds twenty dollars, the right to trial by jury shall be observed.  

Answer: The 7th

2)  This amendment outlaws slavery.  

Answer: The 13th

3)  This amendment provides that Senators shall be chosen by popular vote.  

Answer: The 17th

4)  This amendment endows the Ditrict of Columbia with an electoral college.  

Answer: The 23rd

5)  This amendment outlaws cruel and unusual punishment.  

Answer: The 8th

6)  This amendment guarantees women the right to vote.  

Answer: The 20th