Q 01/05

How many sovereign countries are there in South America?

A) 10

B) 12

C) 14

D) 16

Answer · why

B) 12

12 sovereign states, of which Brazil is by far the largest; French Guiana is an overseas region of France and the Falkland Islands a British territory...

Q 02/05

The Amazon River carries roughly what share of all the river water flowing into the world's oceans?

A) One-twentieth

B) One-fifth

C) One-tenth

D) One-third

Answer · why

B) One-fifth

One-fifth, or about 20%: its average discharge of roughly 220,000 cubic metres per second exceeds that of the next seven largest rivers combined.

Q 03/05

The Amazon rainforest gets its name from Francisco de Orellana, who borrowed it from what?

A) A river in his native Spain

B) The female warriors of Greek myth

C) An Inca word for 'great water'

D) The Portuguese for 'wilderness'

Answer · why

B) The female warriors of Greek myth

The female warriors of Greek myth, the Amazons, came to Orellana's mind when his 1542 expedition reported being attacked by fighting women on the rive...

Q 04/05

What percentage of the Amazon rainforest lies within Brazil?

A) About 40%

B) About 60%

C) About 75%

D) About 90%

Answer · why

B) About 60%

About 60% of the forest is Brazilian, with the remainder spread across the Andean states and the Guiana Shield; Colombia holds the third-largest share...

Q 05/05

The Amazon rainforest spans the territory of how many nations?

A) Five

B) Seven

C) Twelve

D) Nine

Answer · why

D) Nine

Nine: eight sovereign states plus French Guiana, which is an overseas region of France rather than an independent country.