General 131217

General 131217 is a selection of 10 questions. General 131217 is the filename to differentiate it from other general knowledge quizzes. Feel free to use any of these questions and answers for your own quizzes. Just keep in mind that you cannot republish them in any format.

1   What flag do Royal Navy submarines fly when returning from action?
A   The Jolly Roger or skull and crossbones (The use of the ‘Jolly Roger’ on submarines stemmed from comments by an Admiral who declared submarine warfare was “ungentlemanly” and that submariners were nothing more than pirates! After this, when returning from action on entering harbour, the ‘JR’ was flown to denote any successes obtained whilst on patrol)

2   How many is a baker’s dozen?
A   Thirteen – from the former practice among bakers and other tradespeople of giving 13 items to the dozen as a safeguard against penalties for short weights and measures

3   What does the Latin phrase “Cogito ergo sum” mean?
A   I think, therefore I am (it is a philosophical proposition by René Descartes)

4   How many of the 50 American states start with the letter M?
A   Eight (Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri,

5   What is the name of the psychological syndrome where a hostage empathises and has positive feelings towards their captor?
A   Stockholm syndrome – In 1973 in an attempted bank robbery, Jan-Erik Olssontook took four employees hostage for six days (23–28 August). When the hostages were released, none of them would testify in court; instead, they began raising money for the defence

6   Which daily newspaper has a gossip column entitled ‘Bizarre’?
A   Sun

7   How many members must an inquest jury in England have at a minimum?
A   Seven – the coroner normally sits alone. However, in certain circumstances, they may sit with a jury of seven to eleven people

8   Which company makes Colt and Outlander models of car?
A   Mitsubishi

9   What is the name for a jeweller’s magnifying eyepiece?
A   Loupe – a small magnifying glass used by the jeweller to measure and inspect their stones – it is easily foldable and measures approximately half an inch in diameter with a range of magnifications

10   Which retail company acquired the Dobbies chain of garden centres in 2007?
A   Tesco (Tesco bought Dobbies Garden Centres in 2007, and since then it has grown to become the UK’s second largest specialist garden centre retailer, operating 35 garden centres across Scotland, England and Northern Ireland – On 17 June 2016, Tesco sold the company on to a group of investors led by Midlothian Capital Partners and Hattington Capital for £217m.)