Trivia Questions
1. Which sports have been played on the moon?
a) Soccer, Tennis
b) Football, Discus
c) Golf, Javelin
2. Why do some athletes train at a high altitude?
a) To decrease the oxygen getting to their muscles, strengthening them more efficiently
b) To increase their red blood cell count, therefore increasing oxygen delivery to
their muscles
c) The thinner air strengthens the athlete's lungs
3. Good balance is crucial in a variety of sports and in everyday life. The inner ear
plays a very important role in our ability to balance, how?
a) Our brain uses stereo hearing to help determine how we are moving in relation to the
source of a sound
b) Fluid in our inner ear shifts and is sensed by specialized cells to signal when our head
is tilting
c) Pressure changes in an air pocket signal when we are moving or tilting our head
4. Injuries sometimes happen in sports. Does a broken bone repair itself to be...
a) stronger than it was previously
b) the same strength as it was previously
c) weaker than it was previously
5. Boxers are known for their lightning-fast punches, but there's a minuscule member
of the animal kingdom that can punch with the power of a .22 caliber bullet.
This animal is the...
a) mantis shrimp
b) empusa praying mantis
c) emperor scorpion
Trivia Questions
6. What is the fastest a human has ever been clocked running?
a) 25.3 mph
b) 26.7 mph
c) 27.8 mph
7. What is the fastest a human-powered vehicle has ever traveled?
a) 65 mph
b) 85 mph
c) 100 mph
8. The fastest human can swim 50 m in 20.91 seconds. How fast could one of the
world's fastest fish, the sailfish, cover that same distance?
a) 10 seconds
b) 6 seconds
c) 2 seconds
9. Why does a golf ball have dimples?
a) To reduce drag from the air and make it fly further.
b) To provide friction to keep it from slicing off the club as it's hit.
c) To slow the ball once it makes contact with the ground.
10. What is the farthest a golf ball has ever been hit?
a) 515 yards
b) 1,200 yards
c) 1 million miles
Answers on the next page
Trivia Answers
1. C, Astronauts Alan Shepard and Edgar Mitchell both had a bit of fun on their moon
landing on February 6, 1971. Shepard struck a golf ball, while Mitchell threw a javelin
(actually the staff from a solar wind experiment). The two pieces of equipment remain
on the moon to this day.
Learn more: abcnews.go.com/US/40th-anniverary-golf-shot-moon/story?id=12834145
2. B, When an athlete trains at a high altitude, each breath he or she takes contains less
oxygen. This triggers a hormone called Erythropoietin to create more red blood cells.
When the athlete returns to a lower elevation, they then have more red blood cells to
bring extra oxygen to their muscles, increasing performance.
Learn more: livescience.com/32750-why-do-athletes-train-at-high-altitudes.html
3. B, The inner ear contains 3 canals that use fluid and specialized cells to tell when
our head is tilting. This, along with several other sensory systems in the body, allows us
to balance.
Learn more: asha.org/public/hearing/How-Our-Balance-System-Works/
4. B, it is a common misconception that a broken bone repairs itself to be stronger than
it was previously. When a bone repairs itself, the bone that forms around the site of the
break can initially make the area stronger, but the bone will then return to roughly the
same strength as before the break.
Learn more: nytimes.com/2010/10/19/health/19really.html?_r=0
5. A, The mantis shrimp can unload a punch with the power of a .22 caliber bullet to
stun its prey or even crack the shells of its victims.
Learn more: video.nationalgeographic.com/video/worlds-deadliest/deadliest-mantis-shrimp
Trivia Answers
6. C, Jamaican runner Usain Bolt was clocked running at 27.8mph in the 100m in the
2009 Olympics.
Learn more:
independent.co.uk/news/science/under-the-microscope-how-fast-can-a-human-run-1960718.html
7. B, the record for the fastest human-powered vehicle was recently broken by team
AeroVelo's custom recumbent bicycle, clocked at just over 85mph.
Learn more: engadget.com/2015/09/18/aerovelo-fastest-human-powered-vehicle/
8. C, sailfish have been recorded to swim at 68mph, meaning one could cover 50m
in just under 2
Learn more: animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/fish/sailfish/
9. A, a golf ball with dimples will fly about twice as far as a smooth ball.
Learn more: scientificamerican.com/article/how-do-dimples-in-golf-ba/
10. C, In 2006, a Russian Cosmonaut hit a lightweight golf ball from the space station
into partial orbit. Scientists estimate the ball traveled roughly 1 million miles before
entering the atmosphere and burning up.
Learn more: space.com/3149-astronauts-whack-golf-ball-outfit-station-spacewalk.html