1) Arms Race is about how Europeans managed to improve the power of Chinese gunpowder. What was the secret ingredient that Europeans had more of?

a) Hot Peppers
b) Sulpher
c) Animal Dung

2) Pigeons in a Pelican is about how behaviorist B.F. Skinner developed a prototype for a World War II weapon that would be controlled by pigeons. What was it?

a) Torpedo
b) Guided Missile
c) Tank

3) History’s Hitmen is about a religious sect that thrived in the Middle East during the 1100’s. They were so scary that their name seared itself on our consciousness. What were they called?

a) The Vandals
b) The Thugs
c) The Assasins

4) Divine Wind is the name the Japanese gave to a storm that wrecked a Chinese invasion force, saving Japan. How do you say “Divine Wind” in Japanese?

a) Tai Fun
b) Kamikaze
c) Tsunami

5) The unusual origin of the bugle call “Taps” is told in the story 24 Notes. Who is the unlikely character that first whistled the song to a bugler and suggested he play it?

a) A Civil War general who didn’t know any music
b) A British soldier killed in the Battle of Lexington
c) A World War I Ambulance Driver

6) Paris was besieged by the Prussians in 1870. Paris Post reveals how that gave birth to the world’s first airmail service, with messages sent out by balloons, and brought back by carrier pigeon. How many messages could one pigeon carry?
a) 30
b) 3,000
c) 30,000

7) The Sacred Band is about an elite military unit that helped defeat the Spartans in 371 BC. What did the 300 soldiers serving in the unit have in common?
a) They were all virgins.
b) They were all gay
c) they were all priests

8) Over the Hump tells the story of how the U.S. Army imported camels for use in the west during the 1850s. The person who convinced Congress to appropriate money for this experiment would later become a pivotal figure during the Civil War. Name him:

a) Robert E. Lee
b) Jefferston Davis
c) Williamn Tecumseh Sherman

9) An island rebellion and a lowly insect helped change America forever. What historical event might never have happened but for The Fever Factor:

a) The Louisiana Purchase
b) The invention of the cotton gin
c) The Birth of the Red Cross

10) During the Battle of the Bulge, General George Patton ordered his chaplain to write a prayer, and printed enough copies to give one to every man in the Third Army. What did Patton’s Prayer “humbly beseech” the almighty to do?

a) Convince the enemy to surrender in order to save lives
b) Give Patton a fourth star, making him a full general
c) Stop the heavy rains that were making advance impossible
d) All of the above

11) In the 1700’s, Britons developed a thirst for tea, leading to a national Tea Party. What did Britain sell to the Chinese to pay for all that tea?

a) Opium
b) Beer
c) Mutton

12) The story of Yankee Doodle is A Dandy Tale because the song written by a British officer to make fun of colonial militiamen was eventually turned around and used to taunt the Redcoats. Which of the following is true:

a) Colonials threw the song back at the British when they retreated back to Boston after the battles of Lexington and Concord
b) A colonial band played the song when the British surrendered at Saratoga
c) The words mocking the colonial militia were written by a surgeon named Schukburg
d) All of the above

13) A ragtag Army of colonials managed to drive the British out of Boston in 1776 thanks to The General’s Gambit. What bold deception gave General Washington this unlikely victory?

a) He convinced the British he had far more men than he really did
b) He acted like he had plenty of gunpowder when he was desperately short of it
c) He pretended he had cannons that were in fact painted logs
d) All of the above

14) The shooting of an elderly pig in 1859 on the San Juan Islands triggered an international incident between Britain and the US known as The Pig War. What kind of pig was it?

a) A Pittsburg Porker
b) A Hereford Hog
c) A Berkshire Boar

15)A European conflict in the 1500’s led to the first known use of butter on bread. What famous scientist, who was commanding a beleaguered town during The Siege of Bread and Butter, brought these two things together to fight an outbreak of plague?

a) Copernicus
b) Galilleo
c) Newton

16) Flag Day is the story of what may be the most famous war photograph in history: the raising of the flag on Iwo Jima in 1945. Which of the following is true:

a) The picture actually captures the second flag raised on Mount Suribachi that day
b) Photographer Joe Rosenthal almost missed the shot, and wasn’t even looking through the viewfinder when he hit the button
c) When the film was developed, it turned out that the frames on either side of the picture were ruined by light leaks, so it is a miracle that the picture even came out.
d) All of the above

17) Which of the following words or phrases in the story Fighting Words originated from the flintlock musket?

a) Roll Out the Barrell
b) Flash in the Pan
c) If I Had a Hammer
d) All of the above

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