Q 01/05

What was Slinky inventor Richard James's job when he saw a spring 'walk' off a shelf in 1943?

A) Naval engineer

B) Toy-store clerk

C) Watchmaker

D) Physics teacher

Answer · why

A) Naval engineer

His wife Betty picked the name, and about 300 million were sold in the toy's first 60 years.

Q 02/05

How long did it take the first 400 Slinkys to sell at their 1945 Philadelphia department store debut?

A) A week

B) 90 minutes

C) One day

D) A month

Answer · why

B) 90 minutes

The toy later did duty as a classroom physics prop and as an improvised radio antenna in Vietnam.

Q 03/05

The Rubik's Cube was invented in 1974 by a Hungarian sculptor and professor of what?

A) Mathematics

B) Engineering

C) Architecture

D) Chemistry

Answer · why

C) Architecture

It was originally called the Magic Cube and was licensed to Ideal Toy Corp in 1980.

Q 04/05

Roughly how many Rubik's Cubes had been sold worldwide as of January 2024?

A) 50 million

B) 100 million

C) 1 billion

D) 500 million

Answer · why

D) 500 million

The cube has about 43 quintillion possible arrangements and only one solved state.

Q 05/05

What did French electrician André Cassagnes originally call the Etch A Sketch?

A) L'Écran Magique

B) Le Dessinateur

C) La Boîte à Images

D) Le Tableau Gris

Answer · why

A) L'Écran Magique

The name means 'the magic screen'; the Ohio Art Company launched it in the US for Christmas 1960.