January 10

1778

Carl Linnaeus, the inventor of the binomial nomenclature system used to give animals scientific names, dies in Sweden at the age of 70.

It's All Greek (and Latin) to Me

What animal's scientific name is...

Quaestiones faciles

  1. Felis catus
  2. Canis lupus familaris
  3. Panthera tigris
  4. Panthera leo
  5. Crocodylus niloticus

Quaestiones mediae

  1. Bos taurus
  2. Ursus maritimus
  3. Vultur gryphus
  4. Ophiophagus hannah
  5. Mustela nigripes

Quaestiones difficiles

  1. Pan troglodytes
  2. Ailuropoda melanoleuca
  3. Balaenoptera musculus
  4. Aedes aegypti
  5. Haliaeetus leucocephalus

Quaestiones faciles

  1. Cat
  2. Dog
  3. Tiger
  4. Lion
  5. Nile crocodile

Quaestiones mediae

  1. Cow
  2. Polar bear
  3. Andean condor
  4. King cobra
  5. Black-footed ferret

Quaestiones difficiles

  1. Chimpanzee
  2. Giant panda
  3. Blue whale
  4. Yellow fever mosquito
  5. Bald eagle

1806

Dutch forces surrender Cape Town, South Africa to the British.

The Greatest Cape

I have good hope you'll ace this cape quiz!

  1. Who are Thunderhead, Stratogale, Metaman, Dynaguy, and Splashdown?
  2. What African country changed its official name in 2013 so that the word "Cape" would no longer be used?
  3. In what web serial by John C. McCrae are superheroes commonly referred to as "capes"?
  4. What was called Cape Kennedy from 1963 to 1973?
  5. What caped figure was played by Bob Anderson, Sebastian Shaw, David Prowse, and James Earl Jones?
  1. Heroes from The Incredibles who died in cape-related accidents
  2. Cabo Verde
  3. Worm
  4. Cape Canaveral
  5. Darth Vader

1999

The Sopranos debuts on HBO.

Capiche?

To balance things out, let's ask some questions about positive Italian-American representation.

  1. Who was the first Italian-American Speaker of the House?
  2. What singer got an extra fast, traffic-free ambulance ride to the hospital on the day he died because everyone was inside watching the Seinfeld finale?
  3. After a single disastrous season under Ray McLean, what New York Giants offensive coordinator did the Green Bay Packers hire as a new head coach?
  4. Who was the first woman to appear on a major party's presidential ticket?
  5. Who was the first American to be a canonized as a saint by the Catholic Church?
  6. In 2008, President George W. Bush awarded whom a Presidential Medal of Freedom for his work on AIDS relief?
  7. Who won the second season of The Next Food Network Star?
  8. What was the surname of brothers Giocondo, Francesco, Rachele, Candido, Giuseppe, Gelindo, and Valeriano, who, in 1915, founded a company that sold water pumps for agricultural use?
  1. Nancy Pelosi
  2. Frank Sinatra
  3. Vince Lombardi
  4. Geraldine Ferraro
  5. Frances Xavier Cabrini
  6. Anthony Fauci
  7. Guy Fieri
  8. Jacuzzi
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