Q 01/05

Which patty size did A&W pitch against McDonald's Quarter Pounder, only for customers to judge it smaller?

A) 1/5 lb

B) 3/10 lb

C) 1/3 lb

D) 1/2 lb

Answer · why

C) 1/3 lb

A&W's 1/3 lb Third Pounder lost to the Quarter Pounder because diners read 3 as less than 4 and assumed a third was less meat than a quarter. It beat ...

Q 02/05

What share of an 18-karat gold ring is actually gold, on a scale where 24 karat means pure?

A) 18%

B) 50%

C) 60%

D) 75%

Answer · why

D) 75%

18-karat gold is 75% gold, because karats count parts per 24 and 18/24 reduces to three quarters. The rest is copper, silver or other metals that make...

Q 03/05

In which fraction of a dollar did the NYSE quote prices until 1997, a habit from Spanish coins chopped into 'bits'?

A) Quarters

B) Eighths

C) Tenths

D) Sixteenths

Answer · why

B) Eighths

Eighths ruled Wall Street because the Spanish dollar was literally cut into eight 'bits', and that 1/8 tick lasted until the New York Stock Exchange w...

Q 04/05

What does a '2×4' board actually measure in inches, once the rough-sawn plank has been dried and planed smooth?

A) 1 1/2 × 3 1/2 in

B) 1 5/8 × 3 5/8 in

C) 1 3/4 × 3 3/4 in

D) 2 × 4 in

Answer · why

A) 1 1/2 × 3 1/2 in

A '2×4' is really 1 1/2 × 3 1/2 in (38 by 89 mm), because the name describes the rough green board before kiln drying shrinks it and planing takes off...

Q 05/05

Which Roman punishment, 'destruction of a tenth' in Latin, killed every tenth man of a unit that had shown cowardice?

A) Crucifixion

B) Decimation

C) Fustuarium

D) Proscription

Answer · why

B) Decimation

Decimation chose its victims by lot, and the nine men spared in each group of ten had to club their condemned comrade to death. The survivors were the...