Q 01/05

Which former US president's foundation has led the fight to wipe out Guinea worm disease since 1986?

A) Bill Clinton

B) Gerald Ford

C) Jimmy Carter

D) George H. W. Bush

Answer · why

C) Jimmy Carter

Jimmy Carter said in 2015 that his last wish was to see the last Guinea worm die before he did. When his centre took up the fight in 1986, an estimate...

Q 02/05

Which blood-feeding worms were classed as a medical device by US regulators in 2004?

A) Leeches

B) Bloodworms

C) Blood flukes

D) Ragworms

Answer · why

A) Leeches

Leeches earn their place in microsurgery because their saliva carries hirudin, which stops blood clotting. They relieve blood congestion in reattached...

Q 03/05

Ringworm, the itchy red ring that spreads across the skin, is caused by what kind of organism?

A) A roundworm

B) A skin mite

C) A virus

D) A fungus

Answer · why

D) A fungus

A fungus causes ringworm, and about 40 different kinds can do it. The same family of skin infections includes athlete's foot and jock itch.

Q 04/05

The silkworm, raised in China for thousands of years for its silk, prefers the leaves of which tree?

A) Willow

B) Mulberry

C) Persimmon

D) Ginkgo

Answer · why

B) Mulberry

Mulberry leaves, above all those of the white mulberry, are the silkworm's food. Millennia of selective breeding have left the adult moths dependent o...

Q 05/05

In Frank Herbert's Dune, the giant sandworms of Arrakis produce which priceless substance?

A) Dilithium

B) Unobtainium

C) The spice

D) Kyber crystal

Answer · why

C) The spice

The spice, properly called melange, is made by sandworm larvae and makes safe interstellar travel possible. Harvesting it is deadly work, because the ...