Science & Nature50 randomly selected Science & Nature questions for quizmasters. New random selection made weekly. Next update: Monday 4th May 2026 (Please note: Questions are taken from our database of previous quizzes. Some questions and answers may be outdated.) |
|
|
|
|
| 1. | Soporific drugs are more commonly known as what? |
|
Sleeping pills (from Latin sopor 'sleep' and fic make - also Hypnotic: from Greek hypnos 'sleep' and tic pertaining to) | |
| 2. | The symbol for what chemical element is derived from the Latin word argentum? |
|
Silver (Ag) | |
| 3. | Native to central east Australia, Oxyuranus microlepidotus is the most toxic snake in the world. Also known as the fierce snake, it is more commonly called the western or inland what? |
|
Taipan | |
| 4. | With wind speeds between 34 and 40 knots, a 'gale' is the description of what number on the Beaufort wind force scale? |
|
8 | |
| 5. | What 'M' describes this New World monkey species? |
|
Marmoset (Common Marmoset - Callithrix Jacchus) | |
| 6. | In physics, what letter of the alphabet is used to represent the speed of light in a vacuum? |
|
c (as in E = mc2) | |
| 7. | How many teeth do humans normally grow in a lifetime? |
|
52 (20 milk + 32 adult) | |
| 8. | What 'W' describes the intermediate phase when the Moon's apparent size is increasing from new moon toward full moon? |
|
Waxing (Waning when the size is apparently decreasing) | |
| 9. | What organ is affected by emphysema? |
|
Lungs | |
| 10. | What colour is orange blossom? |
|
White | |
| 11. | What 'S' describes a form of therapy and the Japanese word for "finger pressure"? |
|
Shiatsu (Kanji: 指圧) | |
| 12. | Arrange these planets in order of size, largest to smallest: Mercury, Neptune, Jupiter |
|
Jupiter, Neptune, Mercury | |
| 13. | How is 16 feet 4.85 inches expressed in centimetres? |
|
500 | |
| 14. | How is the medical condition dyspepsia better known? |
|
Indigestion or upset stomach | |
| 15. | Alongside engineer Émile Gagnan, what French naval officer invented the self-contained underwater breathing apparatus (SCUBA) in 1943? |
|
Jacques Cousteau | |
| 16. | What sort of animal is a Rhodesian Ridgeback? |
|
Dog | |
| 17. | What 'G' describes the fine silk used by small spiders for ballooning or kiting? |
|
Gossamer | |
| 18. | What is the collective noun for a group of monkeys? |
|
A troop | |
| 19. | What advance in sound recording was patented by English electronics engineer Alan Blumlein in 1933? |
|
Stereo / Stereophonic Sound | |
| 20. | A two-dimensional matrix barcode, what does QR stand for? |
|
Quick Response | |
| 21. | What 6-letter word can be spelt using the chemical symbols for selenium, copper and rhenium? |
|
Secure | |
| 22. | The alpaca is a camelid mammal native to what continent? |
|
South America | |
| 23. | According to the SI standard, how many bytes are there in a terabyte? |
|
1 trillion or 1012 | |
| 24. | What astronomical structures get their name from the Greek word for "milky"? |
|
Galaxies (Greek γαλαξίας galaxias) | |
| 25. | At room temperature, what is the most malleable metal element? |
|
Gold (a single gram can be beaten into a sheet of 1 square metre) | |
| 26. | What name is given to an elementary particle of light? |
|
Photon | |
| 27. | Stenosing tenosynovitis is a common disorder involving the catching, snapping or locking of a finger flexor tendon, causing dysfunction and pain. What is its more common name? |
|
Trigger finger / Trigger thumb | |
| 28. | A lustrous grey metalloid, what chemical element has the symbol Sb, derived from its Latin name stibium? |
|
Antimony | |
| 29. | What is a more common name for the medical term nocturnal enuresis? |
|
Bedwetting | |
| 30. | What 'C' is the main protein found in cow's milk? |
|
Casein | |
| 31. | In the Domain Name System of the Internet, what country has the top-level domain .ch? |
|
Switzerland | |
| 32. | Is a marten an amphibian, bird, reptile, or mammal? |
|
Mammal | |
| 33. | Dendrology is the science and study of what? |
|
Trees (woody plants including trees, shrubs, and lianas) | |
| 34. | Three 1.5 volt 500 mAh batteries are connected in series. What is their combined output voltage (v) and electric charge (mAh)? |
|
4.5 v 500 mAh (If connected in parallel they would output 1.5 v 1500 mAh) | |
| 35. | What disease takes its name from the Medieval Italian word for "bad air"? |
|
Malaria (Mala Aria) | |
| 36. | In reference to a coherent beam of light, what does the 'A' in the acronym LASER stand for? |
|
Amplification (Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation) | |
| 37. | How many wings does a bee have? |
|
4 | |
| 38. | What 'P' describes several different carnivorous plants with modified leaves known as pitfall traps? |
|
Pitcher plants | |
| 39. | One of the most prevalent medical symptoms, what is a more common name for pyrexia? |
|
Fever (High temperature) | |
| 40. | What colour is named after a genus of cuttlefish from which a rich brown pigment is derived from its ink sac? |
|
Sepia | |
| 41. | In computing, what does the letter 'S' stand for in 'ASCII'? |
|
Standard (American Standard Code for Information Interchange) | |
| 42. | Where, exactly, on the human body is the columella? |
|
Nose (the fleshy external end of the nasal septum) | |
| 43. | What 'H' is the term used to describe inflammation of the liver? |
|
Hepatitis | |
| 44. | To the nearest degree, what is the current axial tilt of the Earth? |
|
23 (23.4°) | |
| 45. | Which element has the symbol Fe? |
|
Iron (from Latin: ferrum) | |
| 46. | In computing, what does the acronym ROM stand for? |
|
Read Only Memory | |
| 47. | What 'R' describes an alternative therapy involving the physical act of applying pressure to the feet, hands, or ears? |
|
Reflexology (Zone therapy) | |
| 48. | In plants and animals, what part of a cell contains nearly all its genetic material? |
|
Nucleus | |
| 49. | Native to the South Island of New Zealand, what 'K' describes this large species of parrot? |
|
Kea | |
| 50. | In this electrical circuit diagram, what device is represented by the symbol highlighted? |
|
Capacitor | |
|
Back to Top Hide Answers Back to Category Index Back to Quiz Index |
|