September 2016 Picture Puzzles
Each of the following seven puzzles decodes to a word, phrase, song title, book, or film.
September 2016 “Mixed Bag” Questions
1. What part of the body suffers from periodontitis?
2. Which country occupies about half of South America?
3. What was the publication Pravda and what does the name mean?
4. What kind of leisure-time activity is Canfield?
5. Who committed murder live on US national TV in 1963 and died in Jail in 1967?
6. What is the characteristic gemstone of New Zealand, often carved?
7. What feature is larger on a proboscis monkey than other monkeys?
8. Which country has the most Arabs living in it?
9. Who Am I?
– I was born in September, 1950.
– I am best known as a Motorcycle racer, winning my first of many World championships at age 20.
– My career was punctuated by several serious crashes and broken bones, and I retired in 1984.
– I moved to Australia and became a TV commentator.
– My quick wit and cockney accent made me a celebrity.
– I died of cancer in 2003.
10. In which country is the resort and entertainment centre “Sun City?”, and why was it frequently in international news in the 1990s?
HARDER QUESTIONS:
11. By which nickname was Albert de Salvo better known?
12. From which plant is the liqueur “Kummel” derived?
13. Who created the fictional detective Phillip Marlowe?
14. What is the map number of the map of Australia in the Melways Street Directory?
15. Who was at the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party?
16. What is the post-code of Uluru?
17. (a) Which actors portrayed (brothers) Bart and Brett and (cousin) Beau Maverick in the original Maverick TV series?
(b) Which Studio produced the original series?
(c) Who portrayed Brett Maverick in the 1994 movie version?
18. The character Sir John Falstaff appears (or is mentioned) in four different Shakespearean plays. Name them.
19. In what year did the Boy Scout Movement commence?
20. In computer jargon, what does “RAM” stand for?
September 2016 Skeptical Crossword
Theme: General Skeptical Issues
September 2016 Skeptical Crossword Puzzle
September 2016 Logic & Maths Problems
September 2016 Logic & Maths Problems
August 2016 Picture Puzzles
Each of the following seven puzzles decodes to a word, phrase, song title, book, or film.
August 2016 “Mixed Bag” Questions
1. What in Australian slang is “laughing gear”?
2. Seminoles are people indigenous to which continent?
3. The 1968 Wimbledon men’s final was an All-Australian affair. Names the two contestants and the winner.
4. What is the equivalent rank to corporal in a British artillery unit?
5. In which year were the Olympics hit by terrorists who murdered Israeli athletes?
6. How many articles are in a brace?
7. From which country does the cartoon series Astro Boy come?
8. Which Australian state capital was founded in 1836?
9. Who Am I?
– I was born in 1949 in Kansas City, Missouri.
– I was a golfer.
– I’ve won two Masters, One US Open and five British Opens, the last in 1983.
– I won the Australian Open in 1984
10. How many consecutive Australian Liberal/Country Party Prime ministers were there before Labour took power in 1972?
HARDER QUESTIONS: (You may want to Google at least some of these)
11. What is the meaning of “FAVONIAN”?
12. Which British boat won both line honours and First on handicap at the inaugural 1945 Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race?
13. In what year did Qantas use cooking oil to power a Sydney – Adelaide flight?
14. According to Chinese folklore, what caused Meng Jiang to cry?
15. Who plays pedal steel guitar on Crosby Stills Nash & Young’s “Teach Your Children”?
16. The Story Bridge Hotel in Brisbane has hosted which sporting event every Australia Day since 1982? (2016 was a World Championship)
17. In what year did Fiorello La Guardia, (Mayor of New York) declare the possession and sale of artichokes illegal?
18. Which actress played one of Dr Who’s companions and later became Barry Crocker’s companion for 20 years?
19. What new international record was set by Jack Sexty in 2015?
20. In what competition did Olav Bjortomt become World singles Champion in 2015?
August 2016 Skeptical Crossword
Theme: Chiropractic
August 2016 Skeptical Crossword Puzzle
August 2016 Logic & Maths Problems
August 2016 Logic & Maths Problems
July 2016 Picture Puzzles
Each of the following seven puzzles decodes to a word, phrase, song title, book, or film.
July 2016 “Mixed Bag” Questions
1. What kind of establishment is a ryokan in Japan?
2. What is the chemical name tri nitro toluene abbreviated to?
3. Which fictional TV family lived at Southfork?
4. What word means both “a piece of wood” and “to adhere”?
5. Who suggested that the Beatles wear suits without collars in their stage performances?
6. Who Am I?
– I am a British Knight of the Realm, born in India in 1940.
– I have had fourteen number one singles in the UK, making me third after Elvis Presley and The Beatles.
– I had number one records in each decade from 50s to 90s.
– I am a bachelor with a passion for tennis.
7. In the opera Madame Butterfly, does the heroine die due to murder, suicide, illness or accident?
8. Mount Aconcagua is the highest peak on which continent?
9. Who am I?
– I was born on 28th of August, 1921 in Pennsylvania, USA.
– After distinguished service as a Women’s Naval Officer in World War II, I became a character actress from 1951, in such movies as Shane, A Star is Born, and The Parent Trap.
– I played Miss Jane Hathaway in The Beverley Hillbillies.
– I died in 1991
10. Which Sydney-born author wrote The Sundowners, North from Thursday and High Road from China?
HARDER QUESTIONS: (You may want to consult Google on at least some of these)
11. Farinelli was an international celebrity of the 18th century. What was his occupation?
12. What feat was completed by the British airship R34 on July 6, 1919?
13. What caused Big Ben’s clock to stop in January 1945?
14. Whose career was brought to an end by Mantecore in 2003?
15. What unusual official position is occupied by Karin Vogel of Rostock, Germany?
16. What were the UK’s Red Snow and Red Beard?
17. Who has portrayed ‘Hope Springs’, ‘Goldie Locks’ and ‘Daphne Honeybutt’ in films?
18. Which ship was re-named Mediterranean, then Dong Fang Ocean, then Oriental Nicety before being retired in 2012?
19. On April 1st 1957 the normally serious BBC TV news programme Panorama convinced thousands of English viewers that what grew on trees?
20. Astana is the capital city of Kazakhstan. What does “Astana” mean in the Kazakh language?
NEW THIS MONTH!
July 2016 Skeptical Crossword
Theme: Famous Skeptics
July 2016 Logic & Maths Problems
July 2016 Logic & Maths Problems
June 2016 Picture Puzzles
This month, each of the following seven puzzles decodes to a film title.
June 2016 “Mixed Bag” Questions
1. Not counting Turkey, name four European countries whose names end in “Y”.
2. What Australian poem begins; I had written him a letter….
3. Of which country did Robert Muldoon become Prime Minister in 1975?
4. Which five-letter word is both “stooping of the posture” and “conjecture supported by minimal evidence”?
5. In Australian slang, what is colloquially known as “fish frighteners”?
6. What was the derivation of the word “Jeep” for the vehicle used in large quantities in World War II?
7. Who Shot Billy the Kid?
8. According to a song, how many times did Lizzie Borden hit her mother and her father with an axe, respectively?
9. The Film A Man For All Seasons won six Oscars in 1967.
(a) In which country was it set?
(b) Who was its central figure?
10. What world-famous fast food chain is contained in this anagram?
Foul skinny cocks enriched late redneck.
HARDER QUESTIONS:
11. What is the diameter, in millimetres, of a compact disc?
12. Apart from unconfirmed sightings, when and where was the last live Tasmanian Tiger (Thylacine) seen?
13. How many eyes do most spiders have?
14. What is the Australian code number for food additive monosodium glutamate (MSG)?
15. How many sheets of paper are there in a quire?
16. Which Nobel Prize did William Shockley win in 1956, and for what achievement did he win it?
17. Which three Olympic sports were introduced at Sydney in 2000?
18. What is the common name for Food Additive 150?
19. In what year, and in what fashion did King Zog of Albania’s reign come to an end?
20. Which planet of our Solar System has a moon called Metis?
NEW THIS MONTH!
“Crossword Clues” Word Quiz
Five sets of ten clues that might be encountered in a crossword. In each set, a certain pair of letters in a certain order is given in correct position in each word.
Example: _ _ B _ _ _ _R _ Month
June 2016 Skeptical Crossword
Theme: General Skeptical Issues
JUNE 2016 SKEPTICAL CROSSWORD PUZZLE
June 2016 Logic & Maths Problems
JUNE 2016 LOGIC & MATHS PUZZLES
May 2016 Picture Puzzles
Each of the following seven puzzles decodes to a word, phrase, song title, book, or film.
May 2016 “Mixed Bag” Questions
1. In the opera La Boheme does the heroine die of murder, suicide, illness or accident?
2. What does a cruciverbalist indulge in?
3. What kind of event is Womad, and where is it held?
4. In what part of your body would you suffer an enteric disease?
5. What is a styptic pencil used for?
6. What was the character Rapunzel most remarkable for?
7. In what year did War Rationing end in Britain? A. 1945 B. 1949 C. 1954
8. What five-letter “R” word is a natural polymer?
9. What is the predominant colour in an amethyst?
10. In what year did Bob Geldof promote the Live Aid concert to raise money for African famine relief?
HARDER QUESTIONS:
11. What is “degaussing” (dee–gow–sing) and why did they do it to ships in World War II?
12. Who beat the Roman army at the battle of Cannae in 216 BC?
13. On which river is Washington DC situated?
14. What was the real name and occupation of author Lewis Carroll?
15. In internet parlance, what does the term URL stand for?
16. Who stabbed French Revolution Leader Jean-Paul Marat to death in his bath on 13th July 1793?
17. How many possible opening moves are there in a game of chess?
18. a. When was the first Agatha Christie Mystery Novel published?
b. What was it called?
c. Which of her famous detective characters did it introduce?
19. There are four Guggenheim museums in the world currently operating as at April 2016. Where are they?
20. How many stars are on the Chinese flag?
May 2016 Skeptical Crossword
Theme: Religion and Superstition
May 2016 Logic & Maths Problems
MAY 2016 LOGIC & MATHS PROBLEMS
April 2016 Picture Puzzles
Each of the following seven puzzles decodes to a word, phrase, song title, book, or film.
April 2016 “Mixed Bag” Questions
1. In what industry is American Bert Rutan a modern-day pioneer?
2. Decode these so-called “letter equations”. Each represents a common phrase.
e.g. 2 = P in a P would be “two peas in a pod”
Example: “365 = D in a Y would be”
365 days in a year
Solve these:
a) 2 = W in a F
b) 4 = Y in an O
c) 5 = L in a L
d) 13 = B in a BD
3. What was the name of Josef Stalin’s daughter who defected to the west?
4. What instrument did Oscar Peterson play?
5. At what festival, and in what South American city do Samba Schools compete with each other annually?
6. Which 1960s film starred Spencer Tracy, Katharine Hepburn, Katharine Houghton and Sidney Poitier?
7. Australia’s first speeding fine was imposed in what year?
A. 1897 B. 1902 C. 1904
8. What organ is inflamed when one has encephalitis?
9. “Judo” means
A. Self Defence B. Gentle way C. open hand
10. True or false? At 30 days, Pope John Paul 1 had the shortest reign of any pope
HARDER: (You may want to look these up)
11. In what year did the Boy Scout Movement commence?
12. CSIRO is Australia’s peak body of Applied Scientific research. What does “CSIRO” stand for?
13. Where does the perfume brand name “4711” originate?
14. What are the ingredients in a “Vicious Sid” Cocktail?
15. State whether each of these three sports has (or has not) ever been an Olympic event.
(a) Tug of War
(b) Croquet
(c) Cricket
16. In what year was the British Mini motor car first sold?
17. What are the names of King Lear’s three daughters in the Shakespearean tragedy King Lear?
18. Who was the third astronaut to walk on the moon?
19. What is the common name for food additive 901?
20. For how long can you legally drive in Victoria Australia on an international license before you have to get a Victorian license?
April 2016 Skeptical Crossword
Theme: Homeopathy
APRIL 2016 SKEPTICAL CROSSWORD
April 2016 Logic & Maths Problems
APRIL 2016 LOGIC & MATHS PROBLEMS
March 2016 Picture Puzzles
Each of the following seven puzzles decodes to a word, phrase, song title, book, or film.
March 2016 “Mixed Bag” Questions
1. For each of the following TV characters, give both the actor or actress best known for portraying that character and the name of the TV series which featured the character.
Fox Mulder
Jedd Clampett
Ethel Mertz
2. Smith is still the commonest surname in the UK. Name the next four most common.
3. For what man-made devices is Mount Palomar in the USA famous?
4. The Beatles song that goes:
“Sexy Sadie –what have you done? You made a fool of everyone”
is aimed at which cult figure of the 1960s?
5. Which plane’s frequent crashes in the 1950s prompted Melbourne chemist Dr David Warren to invent The Black Box?
A. Fokker Friendship; B. DeHavilland Comet; C. Douglas DC7
6. Of Which US state is Lansing the capital?
7. Who won the 1980 Best Actress Oscar for Coal Miner’s Daughter?
8. What nationality was Edvard Munch, painter of The Scream ?
9. In what year?
• The UK and Ireland both introduce decimal currency
• John Lennon records Imagine
• Films include A Clockwork Orange and Dirty Harry
• Astronauts take their first ride on the moon in the lunar rover
• Bangladesh achieves independence from Pakistan
10. What industry employs two-thirds of the labour force in the Bahamas?
A. Fishing
B. Fruit growing
C. Sugar production
D. Tourism
HARDER: (You may want to look these up)
11. Which three Olympic sports were introduced at Sydney in 2000?
12. What is the common name for Food Additive 150?
13. Who was the last King of Albania, and in what year, and in what fashion did his reign come to an end?
14. Which planet of our Solar System has a moon called Metis?
15. By which nickname was Albert de Salvo better known?
16. From which plant is the liqueur “Kummel” derived?
17. Who created the fictional detective Phillip Marlowe?
18. If the Governor-General of Australia is unable to proceed, which Office-bearer automatically becomes his / her stand-in?
19. (a) Which actors portrayed brothers Bart and Brett and cousin Beau Maverick in the original Maverick TV series?
(b) Which Studio produced the original series?
(c) Who portrayed Brett Maverick in the 1994 film version?
20. The character Sir John Falstaff appears in three Shakespearean plays and is mentioned in a fourth. Name them.
March 2016 Skeptical Crossword
Theme: General Skeptical Issues
MARCH 2016 Skeptical Crossword
March 2016 Logic & Maths Problems
MARCH 2016 LOGIC & MATHS PROBLEMS
February 2016 Picture Puzzles
Each of the following seven puzzles decodes to a word, phrase, song title, book, or film.
February 2016 “Mixed Bag” Questions
1. In which two sports did Australia’s first Olympic Gold Medallist Edwin Flack compete at the 1896 Olympics?
2. The Australian spider that America’s blackwidow is most closely related to is:
A. Red-back B. Funnel-web C. Hunstsman
3. Why did NATO move its headquarters from Paris to Brussels in 1966?
4. Which Australian State flag bears a picture of a white-backed piping shrike, (inaccurately sometimes called a magpie)
5. Was the Bauhaus a famous German school of Architecture, Cooking or Economics?
6. What country put the Yeti (or Abominable Snowman) on its 1958 list of protected species: Nepal, Tibet or China?
7. Who released Alice’s Restaurant in 1967?
8. Which 1960s film starred James Mason and featured Shelley Winters, Sue lyon and Peter Sellers?
9. What was The Wicked Witch of the West squashed by in The Wizard of Oz?
10. Who was president of the International Olympic Committee between 1980 and 2001?
HARDER: (You may want to look these up)
11. How many possible opening moves are there in a game of chess?
12. When was the first Agatha Christie Mystery novel published, what was it called and which of her famous detective characters did it introduce?
13. There are five Guggenheim museums in the world. Where are they?
14. How many stars are on the Chinese flag?
15. What is the diameter, in millimetres, of (a) a compact disc? (CD) and (b) the hole in the centre of a Compact Disc?
16. Apart from unconfirmed sightings, when and where was the last live Tasmanian Tiger (Thylacine) seen?
17. How many eyes do most spiders have?
18. What is the Australian code number for food additive monosodium glutamate (MSG)?
19. How many sheets of paper are there in a quire?
20. Who shared the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1956?
February 2016 Skeptical Crossword
Theme: Frauds and Scams
FEBRUARY 2016 SKEPTICAL CROSSWORD
February 2016 Logic & Maths Problems
February 2016 Logic & Maths Problems
January 2016 Picture Puzzles
Each of the following seven puzzles decodes to a word, phrase, song title, book, or film.
January 2016 “Mixed Bag” Questions
1. For each of the following TV characters, give both the actor best known for portraying that character and the name of the TV series which featured the character.
a. Lovejoy
b. Arthur Daley
c. Captain Mainwaring
2. Decode these so-called “letter equations”. Each represents a common phrase.
e.g. 2 = P in a P would be “two peas in a pod”
a. 8 = T on an O
b. 12 = N on a CF
c. 12 = E in a D
d. 6 = W of HTE
e. 2 = W D M A R
3. With which medical breakthrough was the Australian Howard Florey associated?
4. Whose real name was Doris Kappelhoff?
5. Which Australian leader of the opposition was wounded in an assassination attempt in the 1960s?
6. Which American president’s father was once US ambassador to Great Britain?
7. Australia’s Royal National Park, established in 1879 is the world’s second oldest after Yellowstone in the USA. In what state is Royal National Park?
8. How is Australian musician Mark Lizotte better known?
9. Which is Australia’s most sunny State capital in terms of hours per day?
10. Which European cartoon hero has a dog called Snowy?
HARDER: (You may want to look these up)
11. What is polythelia?
12. Who was originally supposed to occupy the black sarcophagus in Admiral Nelson’s tomb?
13. In what state or territory of Australia is there an annual public holiday for Borroloola Show Day?
14. Mary Tamm and Lalla Ward portrayed Romana 1 & 2 respectively in Dr Who. What is “Romana” short for?
15. In which city is the Jackie Chan Science Centre located?
16. Which Prince of the United Kingdom fought in World War I on the German side?
17. Bill Howard is the only back – to – back winner of which event?
18. Where is Whoop Whoop Weather Station?
19. Which country has a flag whose obverse is different from its reverse?
20. Which fragrance was first made for the Russian Count Orloff in 1768?
January 2016 Skeptical Crossword
Theme: Job Titles and Descriptions
JANUARY 2016 SKEPTICAL CROSSWORD
January 2016 Logic & Maths Problems
JANUARY 2016 LOGIC & MATHS PROBLEMS
PUZZLES ARCHIVES
PUZZLES ARCHIVE 1 (AUGUST 2010 to APRIL 2011)
PUZZLES ARCHIVE 2 (MAY 2011 to SEPTEMBER 2011)
PUZZLES ARCHIVE 3 (OCTOBER 2011 to NOVEMBER 2012)
PUZZLES ARCHIVE 4 (December 2012 to June 2013)
PUZZLES ARCHIVE 5 (July 2013 to September 2014)
PUZZLES ARCHIVE 6 (October 2014 to December 2015)
