BHSAT 2008 Packet 1
Packet by Ben Colman, Mike Wehrman, Laura Gehring, Denise Alfonso, Cara Chancellor
1. In some Tamludic sources, Adam was created as one of these. In a Michael Chabon novel, one of these is smuggled from under the noses of the Nazis in a suit made for a giant. The most famous one was made in the sixteenth century by Rabbi Judah Loew of Prague. Made of mud or clay and brought to life by inscribing the name of god on it, FTP, identify this being of Jewish folklore, created in times of danger to protect the Jews.
ANSWER: Golem
2. He encountered several storms on his most famous voyage, one of which sank four ships, including one captained by Bartholomeu Dias. Another led him to land at what he called Porto Seguro, which he determined lay east of the line drawn up by the 1494 Treaty of Tordesillas, so he claimed the land for Portugal. Eventually, following the directions provided by Vasco da Gama, he rounded the Cape of Good Hope and reached India. FTP, name this Portuguese explorer, who in 1500 became the first European to find Brazil.
ANSWER: Pedro Alvares Cabral
3. These help reduce the buildup of lactic acid from the conversion of sugars in athletes, allowing them to perform better without fatigue. Their function is based on Le Chatelier’s Principle and the common ion effect, and the Henderson-Hasselbach equation can help determine their maximum capacity. Their presence results in a flat region on a titration curve, as the pH does not change with the addition of more solution. FTP, name these systems usually made up of a weak acid and its conjugate base.
ANSWER: buffers
4. Passages from the work include the lines, "Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep," and "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people." Among its more famous parables are those of the Rich Fool, the Prodigal Son, and the Good Samaritan as well as accounts of the births of John the Baptist and the trek of some shepherds to Bethlehem. FTP name this gospel of the New Testament.
ANSWER: Luke
5. In 1919 he appeared in comic baseball movie called Spring Fever along with the young Moses and Samuel Horwitz, who would later be known as Moe and Shemp Howard of the Three Stooges. Along with Cap Anson and Mordecai “Three Finger” Brown, he was a key figure on Mr. Burns’s ideal softball team, though he was long dead. Known as the Flying Dutchman, he won eight NL batting titles for the Pittsburgh Pirates. However, he is probably best known for being featured on the extremely rare American Tobacco Company T206 card, one of which sold for $2.8 million. FTP, name this shortstop and charter member of the Baseball Hall of Fame.
ANSWER: Honus Wagner
6. Found in the mineral apatite, the white version of this element, known as Willy Pete, was used in bombs during the Iraqi war. One of its radioactive isotopes is used in biology in Northern and Southern blots. It was first discovered by Hennig Brand when he heated traces of urine, resulting in a blue-green glow that gave this element its name. FTP, identify this element which is found in lipids that make up cell membranes and in DNA.
ANSWER: phosphorus
7. Unlike her son Ronny Heaslop, in this novel Mrs. Moore is interested in the culture of the non-European residents of Chandrapore. The central incident involves Mrs. Moore and Adela Quested’s both having a psychotic breakdown while exploring the Marabar Caves and hearing their echoes, and Adela accuses her onetime friend Dr. Aziz of sexually assaulting her. Eventually the misunderstanding is cleared up, but Aziz realizes that no Indian can be friends with an Englishman until the British are out of India. This describes, FTP, which 1924 novel written by E.M. Forster?
ANSWER: A Passage to India
8. A visit to Munich caused him to be influenced by the Neue Sachlichkeit, or the New Objectivity or Sobriety Movement, as evidenced by the often dour faces in such works as 1929’s Woman with Plants. An image of George Washington and a mangled cherry tree is found in Parson Weems’ Fable, and his work Arbor Day is on the reverse of the Iowa State Quarter. His sister Nan and his dentist were the models of his most famous work, featuring a stern-faced couple standing in front of a farmouse. FTP name this painter of American Gothic.
ANSWER: Grant Wood
9. The victor here was the only surviving general in his master’s army, as he served the man who introduced gun-based warfare to their country. That victor used this battle to begin a three year ascension to power that brought him to complete control of all of Honshu. Also known as the realm Divide, this is, for ten points, what year 1600 battle that saw Tokugawa Ieyasu defeat forces loyal to Hideyoshi Toyotomi?
ANSWER: Battle of Sekigahara
10. This is based on the binomial theorem and shows up on de Finetti diagrams as a parabola. It corrected the “genophagy” theory that thought recessive traits would slowly disappear over time. Small population sizes disrupt this because they cause random changes in the gene pool, while random mating is necessary to maintain it. FTP, identify this genetic principle, defined by the equation p2+2pq+q2, which can be used to find frequencies of alleles in populations, the named for a mathematician and a physician.
ANSWER: Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (or Hardy-Weinberg principle)
11. He wasn’t Swiss, but his name is a corruption of the German. He escapes from Moorish captors with the company of Xury and makes his way to Brazil where he starts a plantation. Later in the novel, his companions would be only Friday who is saved from Cannibals and a loquacious parrot. On a trip to Guinea to buy slaves, his ship is overcome by a storm and all of his companions are lost. FTP, identify the title character of a 1719 novel by Daniel Defoe.
ANSWER: Robinson Crusoe
12. Nicholas Steno proposed this in the 17th century and used it to derive his Law of Original Horizontality. In quantum theory, this principle led to the creation of Schrodinger’s cat, because the cat must be in all states possible, alive and dead. It also is the reason interference occurs between 2 waves, as their interaction results in their addition or destruction. FTP, name this principle, which in earth science says that the age of layers of earth gets younger as you head towards the surface.
ANSWER: superposition or Law of Superposition
13. This battle took place on July 1, 1898 near Santiago, Cuba. The American forces managed to take the stronghold, but only after vast casualties making this the bloodiest battle of this “Splendid Little War.” FTP, name this battle of the Spanish-American War that saw the ride of the Rough Riders and the capture of a Spanish hilltop stronghold.
ANSWER: Battle of San Juan Hill
14. He set the Joan of Arc story in 1920s Chicago, depicting “Joan Dark’s” struggles with an evil meat packing tycoon in Saint Joan of the Stockyards, and many of his works encouraged audience judgments and showcased workers’ rights in what he called “Epic Theater.” During WWII, while in exile in Finland and the US, he wrote such plays as The Caucasian Chalk Circle and Mother Courage and Her Children. His musical collaborations may be the most famous, such as The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny, with composer Kurt Weill. FTP, name this German playwright who also collaborated with Weill on The Threepenny Opera.
ANSWER: Bertolt Brecht
15. This tennis player’s career ended abruptly in January 2008 when she was banned from the sport after testing positive for cocaine. Due to injuries, she had withdrawn from the WTA tour at age 22 in 2002 and later returned in 2006. FTP, name this Swiss former World No. 1 tennis player who holds the record for the youngest Wimbledon champion and the youngest Grand Slam singles champion in the 20th century.
ANSWER: Martina Hingis
16. The movie version of this 2000 chick-lit book only includes Josh Richter, Lana Weinberger, and the Moscovitz siblings from Mia’s array of classmates. Another difference, Mia is sought out by her grandmother because father has recently passed away in the film, whereas in the novel it is because he suffers from testicular cancer. FTP, what is the title of this Meg Cabot book which is not divided into chapters, but rather journal entries?
ANSWER: The Princess Diaries
17. According to Herodotus, in 550 BCE this Middle Eastern king overthrew the Median Empire and annexed their kingdom. Shortly thereafter, he conquered Lydia in Asia Minor, to be followed by Babylon and all of Mesopotamia by 539 BCE. FTP, name this Achaemenid king, who had created the largest empire in the world when he was named the first King of Kings of the Persian Empire.
ANSWER: Cyrus the Great
18. Going to war, traveling, and contemplating a lover’s defects are among the titular remedies suggested in his The Cure for Love. His celebrated version of Medea is now lost, and he also wrote a calendar of religious festivals, entitled Fasti. He wrote, “Every lover is a soldier” in Amores I.5, and suggested triumphal processions as a good place to meet women in The Art of Love. Exiled to Tomis on the Black Sea in AD 8, FTP, name this Roman love elegist, the poet of the Metamorphoses.
ANSWER: Publius Ovidius Naso
19. The most prominent member of the Young British Artists that emerged in the late 1980s, many of his best-known works are owned by Charles Saatchi. Famous for works made with unconventional materials such a butterfly wings and pill bottles. More famous are sculptures made of animal carcasses preserved in formaldehyde, such as 1991s “The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living” which is a large tiger shark. FTP, identify this artist who made headlines for the $100 sale of a diamond encrusted skull.
ANSWER: Damien Hirst
20. It contains the double star iota Cnc as well as the triple star system zeta Cnc, and the relatively dim stars that comprise it are often outshone by its two neighbors Gemini and Leo which are to the west and east respectively. It is perhaps most famous for containing the beehive cluster and may have been more noteworthy in ancient times when the sun would lie in this area during the summer solstice. FTP name this constellation, foe of Hercules, and member of the Zodiac.
ANSWER: Cancer
BONUSES
Answer these questions about early research on DNA:
A.) This woman who worked for Watson and Crick was scammed out of a Nobel Prize, even though she developed the actual images of DNA that revealed the double helix.
ANSWER: Rosalind Franklin
B.) The Meselsohn-Stahl experiment showed that DNA replication had this property, where new strands were composed of one old strand and one newly made strand.
ANSWER: semiconservative
C.) This man figured out that there were equal amounts of adenine and thymine in DNA, as well as equal amounts of cytosine and guanine, leading to the discovery of base pairing.
ANSWER: Edwin Chargaff
Diplomatic discontent between the US and France is nothing new. Answer the following FTPE.
A. This 1797 scandal inspired by a demand for bribes by French diplomats from a delegation of Pinckney, Marshall and Gerry takes its name from the alterations made to documents.
ANSWER: XYZ Affair (or equivalents that include “XYZ”)
B. The demand for bribes came from this aristocratic diplomat, who would later be a French representative at the Congress of Vienna.
ANSWER: Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord
C. This French “Citizen” caused a scandal in 1793 when he attempted to raise public support for attacks on Spanish Florida and encouraged privateers to attack British commercial vessels against the wishes of Washington.
ANSWER: Edmund Charles Edouard Genet
Name the following about an author and his works FTP each.
A. This Spanish poet and playwright was a member of the Generation of ’27. He was killed by the Nationalists in the beginning of the Spanish Civil War.
ANSWER: Federico García Lorca
B. One of his three “Rural Plays”, Garcia Lorca wrote this play shortly before his death in 1936. No male character appears in the play, yet Pepe el “Romano” drove the main action of the play and the rivalry between the sisters.
ANSWER: La Casa de Bernarda Alba or The House of Bernarda Alba
C. Garcia Lorca dedicated this collection of poetry to his home province of Andalucia. The poems were took the popular poetic form of romances. One of the more famous of these romances laments the raiding of a gypsy village.
ANSWER: Romancero Gitano or Gypsy Ballads
2. Pluto’s demotion from a “planet” to a “dwarf planet” did more than just make obsolete decades of research into finding fun planetary acronyms involving pizza: it made Gustav Holst’s The Planets a complete symphony once more! Answer the following regarding this famous work, FTPE:
A. This movement was originally scored for a single organ, since Holst believed a piano was too harsh of a sound for this “mystic” piece. It also featured a fade-out ending by having a women’s chorus sing in a separate room.
ANSWER: Neptune, the Mystic
B. Although strikingly dissimilar to Neptune, it has an identical unusual quintuple meter. It is the first movement of the symphony.
ANSWER: Mars, the Bringer of War
C. Holst refused ever to compose a movement for Pluto. That didn’t stop others from trying, though, and in May of 2000, the Hallé Orchestra debuted this composer’s “Pluto, the Renewer.”
ANSWER: Colin Matthews
Answer these questions about the Ottoman Empire FTPE.
A. Also known as “the Lawgiver”, this Ottoman sultan chased the Safavids around Persia and defeated the Hungarians at Mohács while presiding over the peak of Ottoman power.
ANSWER: Suleiman I or Suleiman the Magnificent
B. Scholars mark the 1683 battle over this city as the turning point in the Ottoman advance over central Europe.
ANSWER: Vienna
C. This elite Ottoman infantry corps originally composed of Christian converts to Islam was the first standing army in Europe since the Roman Empire.
ANSWER: janissary or janissaries
This relates luminosity, temperature, and magnitude of stars. FTPE:
A.) Identify this pictoral classification of stars
ANSWER: Hertzsprung-Russell diagram (accept H-R diagram)
B.) These stars extend from the upper left hand corner of the diagram to the lower right hand corner.
ANSWER: Main Sequence stars
C.) These small, very dense stars are found in the lower left hand corner of the diagram and are thought to be the end of a star’s life.
ANSWER: white dwarfs
Answer the following related to a Broadway musical for ten points apiece.
A. This show with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz is based on a novel by Gregory Maguire. It began its Broadway run in 2004 and tells the “real” story of the misunderstood witch Elphaba from the Wizard of Oz.
ANSWER: Wicked
B. This performer, who recently played Nancy in Enchanted, won a Tony Award in 2005 for her portrayal of Elphaba.
ANSWER: Idina Menzel
C. While Idina Menzel was in Rent she met this man, now her husband, who also briefly played Fiyero in Wicked.He currently stars in the Grey’s Anatomy spin-off Private Practice as Dr. Sam Bennett.
ANSWER: Taye Diggs
For ten points each, answer the following about a famous jurist.
A. In 1799 he was offered a position as an associate justice on the Supreme Court but declined and recommended George Washington’s nephew Bushrod Washington, who accepted. Two years later he became Chief Justice and would serve until 1835.
ANSWER: John Marshall
B. Marshall replaced this Connecticut native and third Chief Justice who resigned in 1800.
ANSWER: Oliver Ellsworth
C. In this 1824 case, the Marshall-led court ruled against a New York-approved steamboat monopoly on the Hudson River between New York and New Jersey. It established that the US had the power to regulate interstate navigation, according to the Constitution’s Commerce Clause.
ANSWER: Gibbons v. Ogden
For ten points each, answer the following about a nineteenth-century British poet.
A. In this children’s poem, the retelling of a fairy tale, a musician lures rats out of the title city, but when the residents do not pay for his services, he then lures away the town’s children.
ANSWER: “The Pied Piper of Hamelin”
B. This writer of The Ring and the Book also wrote “The Pied Piper of Hamelin.”
ANSWER: Robert Browning
C. In this Browning work, a naïve girl imagines the wonderful lives of some of her fellow townspeople, who actually live lives of crime and squalor noting, “God’s in His heaven, all’s right with the world!”