Q 01/05

Which nut is rarely sold in its shell, which holds an irritant related to poison ivy's oil?

A) Walnut

B) Cashew

C) Hazelnut

D) Almond

Answer · why

B) Cashew

Cashew shells hold anacardic acid, a skin irritant chemically related to poison ivy's oil, which is why the nuts are shelled and then roasted or steam...

Q 02/05

Which actress played the Batman villain Poison Ivy in the 1997 film Batman & Robin?

A) Nicole Kidman

B) Michelle Pfeiffer

C) Alicia Silverstone

D) Uma Thurman

Answer · why

D) Uma Thurman

Uma Thurman played the villain, whose comic-book alter ego Pamela Isley is a doctor of botany turned eco-terrorist with the power to command plant lif...

Q 03/05

Which way of getting rid of poison ivy is most dangerous, sending its irritant oil into the lungs?

A) Burying it

B) Bagging it

C) Burning it

D) Mowing it

Answer · why

C) Burning it

Burning it releases droplets of the oil into the smoke, which can inflame the eyes, throat and lungs of anyone downwind who breathes it in.

Q 04/05

Which colonist published the first written account of poison ivy, likening it to English ivy?

A) John Smith

B) John Rolfe

C) William Bradford

D) Walter Raleigh

Answer · why

A) John Smith

John Smith described the plant in 1624, noting that a touch brought redness, itching and blisters, yet he argued it had earned its bad name unfairly b...

Q 05/05

Which major US city grew up on the site of a Tongva village whose name meant 'poison oak place'?

A) San Diego

B) San Francisco

C) Los Angeles

D) Sacramento

Answer · why

C) Los Angeles

Los Angeles grew over the old village of Yaanga, and finds linked to it turned up when Union Station was built; poison oak is a close cousin of poison...